


what you said you were

by tallycravens



Category: Motherland: Fort Salem (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Medical, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, Friends to Enemies to Lovers, Not Actually Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-28
Updated: 2020-07-13
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:07:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 42,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24964972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tallycravens/pseuds/tallycravens
Summary: Childhood friends. Rival CEOs. Unwitting soulmates?So maybe Tally and Abigail's relationship is more complicated than it seems.
Relationships: Abigail Bellweather/Tally Craven, Raelle Collar/Scylla Ramshorn
Comments: 114
Kudos: 157





	1. Peacekeeper

**Author's Note:**

> Trigger Warning for some pretty gruesome (but not too descriptive) injuries.

_March 2017_

The night was dark and rainy, the visibility low as Raelle drove down the winding country road in her new vehicle, singing along to the radio with her mother in the passenger seat. The red Chevy Camaro had been her parents’ gift for her 27th birthday just a few weeks prior and earlier that day after visiting, her mom had insisted on being taken for a ‘joy ride.’ The last thought she had before the car skidded on the road was that she’d never felt closer to her.

There was a sickening crash as the car went over the side of the mountain, slamming into the rocks below. When Raelle opened her eyes, her head was aching and when she reached up to touch it, her fingers were covered in blood. As a medical resident, she was no stranger to blood or even to auto accidents, but it was different when she was the one hurt. She groaned, ignoring the shooting pain in her left hand and turning to look at her mother.

It didn’t look good. Her non-dominant hand throbbed as she unfastened her seatbelt, attempting to climb over the console so that she could get a better look. 

“Oh, FUCK!” Raelle glanced down at her left arm and immediately vomited. There was no hand there anymore. She knew she needed to stop the bleeding, but she also had to help her mother. She could feel herself beginning to panic because if she bled out, she would be of no help to anyone. Quickly she checked her mother’s pulse with her right hand.

There was no pulse.

She didn’t have time to mourn as she climbed halfway into the back seat, grunting as she pulled her first aid kit from underneath. It was no easy feat and she was having trouble breathing as she fumbled with the container, trying to open it with her remaining hand. Shakily Raelle grabbed a tourniquet, taking one end in her mouth and the other into her hand. As she tightened it over her arm, she screamed, nearly passing out.

“Siri, call 911…”

* * *

  
  


_April 2020_

It had been far too long since the three of them had gotten together again. Between work and Raelle’s residency, they were always spread a little thin. The childhood friends had remained close over the years and Raelle would never forget how they’d been there for her after the accident. The loss of her hand had been traumatic, the loss of her mother even more so. It was nearly three years to the day that Tally had given Raelle the prosthetic she had designed for her. She had known that her friend was talented, but it wasn’t until that day that she realized just how much.

Since then, Tally had launched her own wildly successful medical device company, a company that directly rivaled Abigail’s family business, Bellweather Corp, the number one medical device company in the country. Now that they were both CEOs of these competing companies, they had become frenemies and argued constantly. Half of the time, Raelle had trouble following their discussions. Today was no different and frankly, she was tired of it.

“For the last time, Abigail, we agreed not to talk about work at these lunches,” Raelle warned her closest friend with a sharp glare, taking a drink from her glass of wine before her gaze fell onto Tally. “The two of you need to work this out. For real.”

“I just think it’s funny how—”

“I’m just trying to explain to her that—”

Raelle held up her prosthetic hand, as a reminder but also as a peace offering to her childhood friends. “Enough. I am not going to sit through thirty minutes of your bickering. This is supposed to be fun. You _do_ remember fun, right? I’ll take my damn food to go if I have to, because I am not listening to another second of this shit.”

“Sorry, Rae,” Tally apologized sheepishly, turning toward Abigail. “To be continued?”

Abigail rolled her eyes. “Looking forward to it,” she muttered sarcastically. She didn’t appreciate that Tally kept bringing up Bellweather Corp in such a negative light. She knew that her parents’ handling of the company wasn’t without its faults, but she had just become CEO and she hadn’t been able to make any changes yet.

Tally swiftly changed the subject as they waited for the lunch they’d already ordered. “How is your residency going, by the way?”

“Grueling. I am so tired all of the time. Pulling doubles on top of doubles. Sometimes I’m like, Raelle, are you _sure_ you wanna be a doctor? But I’m already in so much debt, what the hell else am I gonna do? Oh, plus, you know, helping people is pretty cool.” 

At the mention of Raelle’s student loan debt, Abigail helpfully suggested, “You know that we could help you with that debt, Rae…”

“No fuckin’ way, Abigail,” she practically snarled. “Not gonna happen. You already covered all my medical bills after the accident. I’m not taking another penny from you. And Tally, don’t you give me that look, your money's no good to me either. I swear to god, the two of you are relentless. Just let me pay off my own student loans like a normal person.”

Tally couldn’t help but laugh. After knowing Raelle for practically her entire life, she didn’t scare her anymore. She was all bark and no bite, even when she was frustrated. She was seriously considering secretly paying off Raelle’s loans, as it would be more than feasible now that her company had taken off. Never did she imagine her own medical device company would end up rivaling her friend’s, nor could she have ever expected to be rich. 

She wasn’t comfortable with the money, because that just wasn’t what she was in it for, and she frequently gave to various charities, rather than hoard the money or spend it on herself. To pay off Raelle’s loans would be the perfect next project, and she would have to swear Abigail to secrecy. When it happened there would be no denying one of them had done it. She just had to make sure that Abigail didn’t spill the beans. If she couldn’t figure out which one, she either had to be mad at both or neither of them.

“Well, you didn’t have to curse at me about it, geez,” Abigail rolled her eyes, looking up as the waiter started toward their table. It had taken long enough. The restaurant was understandably busy, but she wasn’t exactly known for being patient. “Finally. I have a one o’clock meeting and you know how hangry I get.”

“Finally...something we have in common,” Tally chuckled, not wasting any time as she dug into her sandwich immediately, only stopping to wipe the mayonnaise dribbling from the corner of her mouth.

Raelle caught her in that moment and let out a snort, putting down her fork. “God, Tally. I thought when you left elementary school, you’d stop being such a messy eater, but it looks like you still haven’t grown out of it.”

“We should get her a bib for Christmas!” Abigail laughed, joining in with the light ribbing.

Tally huffed as she sat her half eaten sandwich back down on the platter. “You know I hate it when you guys gang up on me!”

“Anyway,” Abigail placed her soup spoon against the side of the bowl. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you eat a salad before, Rae. What’s up with that?”

Loudly Raelle crunched her lettuce, chewing it up and swallowing before she responded. “Well sue me for trying to be healthy, damn!”

“You met someone, didn’t you?” Tally had always been extremely intuitive, to the point that she often knew what her friends were feeling before they did.

Sometimes it felt a bit intrusive, because she guessed secrets that Raelle hadn’t even told yet. It was true that she’d met someone, a girl she had a very big crush on, but admitting it out loud would make it real. It meant she’d have to actually DO something about it. Rae had always been useless in the love department.

Her silence said it all as Raelle carefully avoided her friends’ gaze, dousing her salad in the remainder of dressing left in the silver boat. “I might have met somebody,” she finally admitted, because she knew Abigail & Tally wouldn’t stop staring at her until she confessed. They were so goddamn predictable.

“Well? Who _is_ she?” Abigail questioned impatiently, crossing her arms against her chest, expectant for Raelle to give her more information.

“Just another resident at the hospital,” she said as casually as she could manage, as if she wasn’t crushing on her as wildly as she was. She was thirty years old but this girl made her feel like a fuckin’ teenager again. “Her name is Scylla and I keep making a fool of myself in front of her because she’s so pretty and I am so, so gay.”

Tally laughed, having just polished off her sandwich and stopping to wipe her face with her napkin. “Do you know if she’s gay?”

To be honest, Raelle didn’t know Scylla that well and she’d never had the most well developed ‘gaydar,’ as evidenced by her all too many crushes on straight girls. She groaned, her forehead wrinkling. “I have no idea.”

“What’s her last name?” Abigail already had her phone out and the Facebook application open and ready to search her name. “Come on, Rae. You can tell a lot about a girl by her Facebook page. Last name, please.”

She gave in, murmuring, “It’s Ramshorn.”

Abigail glanced up at her quizzically. “Ramshorn? What kind of name is that? How do you even spell that?”

“Like rams’ horn. It’s not _that_ weird.” Raelle felt weirdly defensive, her face reddening as she watched Abigail pull up Scylla’s profile. She saw her smile, then chuckle as she scrolled down. It was driving her crazy that she couldn’t see the screen.

After a few torturous minutes, Abigail put her phone down. “She has her Facebook page locked down good. A few of the TV show pages she’s liked are kinda gay, though. Looks like she has an Instagram. Should we check it out?”

“Yes!” Tally chimed in, grabbing the phone once Abigail had navigated to the Instagram app and brought up her profile. “Oh, wow, she’s really pretty. I think your eyes are the same color.” She scrolled down, nodding her head and making a comment every now and then. Seemingly out of nowhere, she suddenly cursed, “Oh, shit!”

“What did you do?!” Raelle practically screamed, rising up from her chair.

Tally frowned, her gaze wide and apologetic. “I might have accidentally liked her photo…”

**_“TALLY!”_ **

“Don’t get your panties in a twist, Collar,” Abigail muttered, wrenching her phone from Tally’s grasp and clicking the heart button to unlike the photo. “There. Unliked. No harm, no foul. Besides, even if she saw the notification, she doesn’t even know who I am.”

Raelle was beginning to panic, worried that Scylla would make the connection. “Unless she goes to your page and sees the picture you posted of us at lunch,” she pointed out, already feeling sick to her stomach. She grabbed a piece of bread and stuffed it into her mouth, drowning her sorrows in carbs as she so often did. 

“Oh. Fuck. You’re right…” Abigail admitted, looking to Tally for assistance, but her friend just shrugged her shoulders. What a great help she was. “I’m sure she’s probably busy and she might not even have push notifications turned on. Right?”

She kicked Tally underneath the table. “Ow!” Tally rubbed her shin and shot Abigail a glare, receiving a scowl in return. “Right. She’s right,” she grumbled.

Abigail glanced down at her iPhone and her eyes immediately widened.

“What?” Raelle asked as she tore apart another piece of bread and buttered it. It was clear from Abigail’s expression that something had happened.

She quietly confessed, showing Raelle the notification that had just popped up on her phone. “...Scylla just liked that picture of us.”

“NO.”

“Yes!” Abigail laughed, covering her mouth when Raelle glowered at her. “Sorry, it’s just so f—oh, she just left a comment…”

Before she could read it, Raelle was seizing the phone from Abigail’s fingers. It slipped and fell into her friend’s bowl of soup. The look Abigail gave her could’ve turned her to stone. Cursing under her breath, Abi retrieved her phone from the broth and wiped it off as best as she could with her napkin. The device was supposed to be waterproof, or so she hoped. Abigail was able to unlock it with ease and she let out a breath of relief.

“Nothing’s broken. Just a little sticky.” Wearing a menacing expression, she opened the app again to read Scylla’s comment aloud. Her intimidating expression immediately faded because she couldn’t help but smirk in response to Scylla’s words. “Looks like the three of you are having fun, exclamation mark, wink emoji. Tell Dr. C I said hello. Pink hearts. Oh! Rae, she likes you!”

Raelle held out her right hand, knowing better than to try to grab the phone and risk dunking it in Abigail’s soup for a second time. “Let me see that!” Her friend handed the iPhone over and she took it before making a grossed out face. “Oh, it is sticky. You can probably wash this in the bathroom before we leave…” She trailed off as she read over the comment a couple times, then clicked back on Scylla’s profile to scroll through her photos, being careful so as not to accidentally like another one of them. “Motherfucking…” Raelle dropped the phone suddenly on the table. “She just sent you a DM. I can’t even read it. I’m going to climb under this table, I swear to God.”

After taking her iPhone back, Abigail opened her DMs to read the message. She chewed on her bottom lip, trying to hold back a grin. She couldn’t help but snicker. Tally leaned over her shoulder to read what Scylla had written and immediately clapped her hand over her mouth. Raelle balled up her napkin and threw it at her friend, annoyed by their over the top reactions and their hesitance to say anything.

“Well, what does it say?!”

“Uh, she gave me her number. She said she hoped it wasn’t weird, but she’d love for you to text her sometime. And she said to apologize if she was reading things wrong. Ha!” Abigail slapped her knee with her hand as if it was the funniest thing she’d ever heard. “Bitch, she liiiikes you. Get your phone out. I’ll give you her number.”

Raelle quickly slid her phone from her pocket and pulled up the new contact screen. She typed in Scylla’s name, then said she was ready. Once she’d typed the number in and saved it, she lifted her head to look sheepishly at her friends. “Should I text her now, or should I wait? I don’t want her to think I’m desperate…”

“Now—”

“Wait—”

That wasn’t helpful. Tally’s vote was to text her now, because she didn’t believe in playing games and thought Scylla would love to hear from her. Abigail argued that she should wait an hour at least, just to seem ‘cooler’ about the situation. Ultimately, Raelle went with her gut and listened to Tally. She shot Scylla off a quick “hey this is Raelle Collar” text and returned her attention to her friends. They had each finished their meals and their time together as drawing to a close. There was no denying they’d had a great time, even with the infighting between Tally and Abigail. Raelle was hoping that they’d soon find common ground, because it was exhausting trying to be the peacekeeper. She couldn’t help but remember better days, when things had been easier…


	2. Emotions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Tally gives a speech, she becomes overwhelmed by her feelings.

_March 2002_

Raelle stood in the doorway with her brand new Bratz doll in hand, blue eyes following Tally’s familiar family car as her mother pulled into the driveway. They were having a sleepover and she was excited for them to watch the Monsters, Inc. VHS that her grandmother had just sent her for her birthday a few weeks prior. DVD players were still new and her family didn’t have enough money to own one, so she was stuck with the crappy old VCR. Tally never judged her for it, as her family wasn’t all that well off either, but she could tell that sometimes Abigail secretly pitied her. 

She grinned as her redheaded friend jumped out of the car and sprinted toward the door. Her hair was in pigtails that swung around as she ran, tackling Raelle in a hug. She liked to pretend she was tougher than she was, but Raelle always melted around Tally. She was the nicest person she’d ever met and had been her first friend back in preschool. Her parents had been longtime friends with Tally’s and had been there for Tally’s mother when her father passed years prior.

“Wow, cool doll,” Tally giggled as she grabbed it, petting its hair. “She kinda looks like you!” She held the doll up next to Raelle’s face and let out another giggle. “These are way cooler than my Barbies...I wonder if my mommy would get me one.”

Tally had started preschool early, only a year younger than Raelle, who had just turned twelve, but sometimes she could be so babyish. She never made fun of her for it, because she wasn’t a mean person, but she couldn’t imagine still calling her mom “mommy.” 

“Oh! Abi’s here!” Tally’s dimples were visible as she made her announcement, stomping her feet excitedly. Raelle couldn’t help but join in, the two of them laughing joyfully while they watched Abigail saunter up to the front porch. Their friend could be so serious sometimes, but they loved her all the same. She was wearing sparkly pink barrettes in her hair that made her look like a princess. “Hi, Abi, you look really pretty,” Tally whispered reverently as Abigail entered the house. 

Abigail’s mother came in after her, asking to speak to Raelle’s parents. She mumbled that they were in the living room before leading her best friends downstairs to the basement where they always had their sleepovers. Raelle liked it down there. They had a beat up old couch that was super comfy and a nice big TV that her father bought at a yard sale. The Monsters Inc. VHS was already in the VCR, but she wasn’t in a hurry to watch it just yet. They had all night and they still had to eat dinner. She hoped they could order pizza.

“Can we play Nintendo 64 tonight?” Tally’s voice broke through the silence as Abigail sorted through Raelle’s pile of Barbie dolls.

Raelle nodded, plopping down on the floor next to Abigail. “What did you do to her hair?” She asked, lifting up one of the Barbies that Raelle had given a makeover to. She’d chopped the hair off and coloured it with magic markers.

She thought it looked cute, but now she wasn’t so sure. Raelle pouted before defending herself. “I gave her a makeover.”

“She looks ugly,” Abigail told her with her hand on her hip.

Raelle looked crestfallen, feeling guilty that she’d given her Barbie such a bad makeover. If Abigail thought she looked ugly, she probably was. Abigail was the prettiest, smartest, coolest person that she knew. Sometimes she didn’t know why she wanted to be friends with a weird tomboyish girl like her.

“No she doesn’t,” Tally piped up, grabbing the Barbie doll from Abigail’s hand. “She looks different from all the other Barbies. She looks really cool. Can I play with her, Rae?”

She nodded, grateful for Tally’s intervention as Abigail continued to sort through her Barbies in order to find the one she wanted. Raelle felt bad because all of her Barbie dolls were white ones, and she didn’t want Abigail to be sad about it. She knew her friend had some of her own packed away at home, because her mother thought she was too old to play with dolls. It was so stupid, Raelle thought.

“That one’s Cloe, right?” Abigail pointed to the Bratz doll in Raelle’s right hand. “I have Sasha. I just got her yesterday when I went to the mall. I would’ve brought her if I knew you had Cloe. Tally, do you have any Bratz dolls?”

“No, but I want one. We could all play Bratz together.”

“You should ask for one for your birthday,” Raelle suggested, because that was how she’d received hers. Her parents never would’ve spent money on a Bratz doll because they’d just come out and they were pretty expensive. Most of her Barbies had been hand-me-downs from other family members or bought from secondhand shops.

Tally grinned at the thought and scooted closer to Raelle. “Barbie wants to be Cloe’s girlfriend. Is that okay?”

Her cheeks flushed and she nodded as Tally made their dolls kiss each other. It made her feel all weird inside and she didn’t understand why. She wriggled uncomfortably before clearing her throat. “Let’s play Nintendo. Abi, you can pick the game.”

“Pokémon Stadium,” she decided with a grin. 

Abigail had a crush on a boy in their class that was really into Pokémon and she wanted to impress him. Raelle liked Pokémon a lot, too, and played it on her GameBoy pretty often. She had a few of the cards, but she’d either found or traded for most of those. She knew better than to ask her parents for something so useless and expensive. She’d thought about stealing a pack of them once, but she was so terrified that she’d get caught.

Tally dropped the doll like she was a hot potato. It had been her suggestion to play Nintendo anyway. “I call player one!” She dove for the controller, trying to wrench it out of Abigail’s grasp. Unfortunately, Abigail was a lot stronger and she was able to take the controller back with ease. Her redheaded friend huffed and reluctantly took the second player controller while Raelle turned the console on for them to play. She sat on the couch behind them and watched as they chose their characters and began their battle. 

Raelle didn’t mind watching because Abigail and Tally could be so funny. Abigail was a sore loser and Tally got so into it when she played that her pink tongue would stick out of her mouth. The three of them couldn’t be more different, but she couldn’t imagine having better friends.

* * *

  
  


_May 2020_

Today was the official launch of Tally’s new SmartAid, the bluetooth hearing aid that had double the functionality of a typical one. She had prepared a speech and was waiting as she was introduced by the board president, nerves shot because she hated public speaking. It came with the job, though, so she grinned and beared it as she walked up onto the stage, looking out into the audience. Her mother was right up front, beaming, and Raelle & Abigail were sitting alongside her.

Tally adjusted the microphone, trying to ignore all the eyes on her, which made her even more nervous.

“Thank you for coming tonight for the launch of the SmartAid. I wouldn’t be here in front of you right now if it weren’t for some very special people sitting up front. My mother, Eleanor Craven, who has always supported my dreams, even when it wasn’t easy. My best friend, Raelle Collar, without whom I never would have made the blueprint for this entire company. And last, but definitely not least, Abigail Bellweather. A mentor and a long time friend. She challenges me every day and in a myriad of ways.”

It was by no means intentional, but she’d never been great at regulating her emotions. Her voice began to shake as her gaze settled onto Abigail. The way that she was looking at her made her chest swell and for a moment, she couldn’t breathe.

“I can’t imagine my life without her,” she paused, because that hadn’t been part of the speech and she carefully added, “Without all three of them. I want to thank my team, who worked tirelessly to ensure the SmartAid functioned as it was supposed to. The design team, who created a genuinely beautiful piece of medical equipment. All I’ve ever wanted to do is help people, and my heart is bursting with pride just thinking of all the patients who will benefit from SmartAid. That’s why I’m going to be donating a thousand pairs, in good faith, to those who may not otherwise be able to afford a hearing aid. I’d like to call Leslie, my CFO, up to talk a little bit more about what makes that possible.”

The crowd cheered for her as she left the stage and she gave Leslie’s shoulder a polite squeeze, moving to sit down at the table with her family. Her mother congratulated her and told her that she loved her, looking at her in the kind of proud way only a mother could. Tally’s heart felt full as Raelle took one of her hands in hers.

“I’m so proud of you, Tal. You’re changing people’s lives, just like you did mine.”

Tally had tried to get Raelle to let her make a new, better hand for her for the past several years now but she’d insisted she was attached to her current one. It represented a great deal of things, not least of all the beginning of Tally’s career trajectory. Leslie was up on stage discussing Tally’s plan to donate their hearing aids to low income patients who needed them, and she tried to politely listen, but she could feel Abigail’s gaze on her. She turned toward her, cheeks still flushed a precious pink after her speech. The way Abigail was looking at her didn’t help matters.

She had always admired her, ever since they were kids, in a way that sometimes felt more than friendly. Tally had never admitted these feelings to anyone and as they grew older, there was more and more distance between them, especially now. But despite their rival companies, Abigail had shown up for her, though she knew her mother likely read her the riot act for showing up to an event hosted by their direct competition. It wasn’t a good look for the CEO of Bellweather Corp to be rubbing elbows with the CEO of Sunrise Solutions. She had been worried lately that as her own company became successful, her friendship with Abigail would be compromised. They had been butting heads more often than not nowadays, but that didn’t mean Tally cared for her any less.

“It was a great speech, Tally,” Abigail whispered, her fingers moving to rest on top of hers as if it was the most natural thing of the world. Tally straightened, trying to keep her breath even. She might have had one too many glasses of champagne to give her the nerve to go up on stage and now she was beginning to regret it. “For the record, I can’t imagine my life without you either. I know I haven’t been the best friend lately, but I want to make it up to you, if you’ll let me.”

As if she could ever say no to that.

All she could do was nod because there was a knot in her throat and tears threatening to spill from her eyes. She forced a smile and excused herself, slipping out of the ballroom just in time for the tears to flow free. The redhead headed down the hall and ducked into the bathroom, standing in front of the mirror as she tried to gather herself. Tally heard the door swing open a few moments later and quickly dabbed her eyes with a tissue, letting out a soft gasp when she saw that Raelle had gone after her. She must’ve recognized the look on her face, knowing she was about to cry. She had been a pretty big cry baby growing up.

“What’s wrong, Bubbles?” Rae had called her that since they were kids, because the three of them had been big fans of the Powerpuff Girls. She had dubbed herself Bubbles, Abigail Blossom and Raelle Buttercup. Her friend moved to her side, immediately taking her hands in hers and giving them a squeeze. She didn’t say anything, struggling to find any reason why telling the truth would do her any good. Her prolonged silence only increased Raelle’s concern. “Seriously, Tally, what’s up? You’re freaking me out. Did Abigail say something?”

She knew that she and Abigail had been at each other’s throats for the past year or so. It was taking its toll on Tally putting so much energy into a pointless feud with someone she cared about so deeply. But that wasn’t why she was crying. She was crying for something that she knew she’d never have, feelings she had tried unsuccessfully to will away. More than anything, she was just...tired.

“No, she was great. The thing is, for as long as I can remember, I’ve felt…”

Before she could even get the sentence out, the door swung open again and Tally immediately clamped her mouth shut. Abigail had noticed that they were taking a while and had come after them, leaving Tally’s mother alone at the table in the process. She knew she’d hear it for that later, but right now she didn’t care. It felt as if a knife was being twisted into her gut and as she looked at Abigail, her eyes filled with tears again.

“Tally...” The way Abigail said her name made her start shaking and before she knew it, both Raelle and Abigail had her enveloped in their arms, trying to calm her down. Tally could feel her friend’s hand rubbing circles on her back. “It’s okay, baby.” This wasn’t helping, it was only making things worse.

She wrenched herself from their grasp, let out a sigh and blotted her eyes again. “I’m fine.” She splashed some water onto her face, dried off and walked out without another word, leaving her friends standing there dumbfounded.

“What is going on with her?” Abigail whispered as she started after the clearly distraught redhead, realizing that maybe she knew little about what she was going through right now. She had been distracted and suddenly felt like a horrible friend.

Raelle shrugged her shoulders because normally she knew Tally much better than this. She had never had any inkling about how Tally felt for Abigail and it certainly didn’t occur to her now. She was just as confused as Abi was. “I don’t know. She was about to tell me something when you walked in and spooked her.”

“Oh,” the brunette murmured quietly, her face falling. This was her fault. Tally didn’t trust her and that was why she’d cut herself off, not feeling comfortable enough in their relationship to allow her to hear whatever was bothering her.


	3. Falling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tally ends up in the emergency room.

_May 2020 (continued)_

Tally, who wasn’t used to wearing heels, was walking quickly back into the ballroom. She was trying to focus on her destination and wasn’t looking where she was going, when suddenly her ankle twisted. She came crashing ungracefully into one of the tuxedo clad waitstaff, sending his tray and its contents flying.

She was immediately apologetic, grabbing napkins from a nearby table to help clean him up as his top half had become completely soaked in champagne. Abigail and Raelle caught up to her just as she was locking eyes with the admittedly attractive waiter, and then the two of them started laughing.

“Are you okay?” He chuckled, his hand resting on top of hers as she dabbed at his tuxedo jacket. He looked at her as if she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen and honestly, she probably was. “I’ve never had a girl fall for me that hard before.”

It was a cheesy line, but Tally was a cheesy person, so it had her grinning, at least for a moment before she grimaced in pain, holding her ankle. “Ow. I don’t think I am.”

Tally’s mother ran to her side and Rae pushed past the crowd forming around her friend, not kindly suggesting they keep their distance. She got down on the floor, slid the high heel carefully off of Tally’s foot and began to inspect her ankle with the practiced care of a talented doctor. She moved it slowly and the redhead cried out in pain, causing her to immediately let go and apologize.

“I think it’s just sprained, but you can’t rule out a fracture. You need to go to the ER and get it checked out, Tal. Why don’t Abigail and I take you, and your mom can check in on you later.” As Rae made the suggestion, Tally’s mom was about to argue with her. She gave her a sharp look. “We can take it from here, mama bear. She’ll be fine. Just hobbling on crutches for a little while, but don’t worry, I’ll teach her how to use them. She’ll be good as new in no time.” She turned her attention to the charming waiter. “You, what’s your name?”

He looked a bit intimidated under her piercing stare. “Uh. Gerit Elias Buttonwood.” He didn’t know why he’d given her his entire name when just his first name would do. Gerit was probably nervous, because Tally was a beautiful girl but her blonde friend was downright terrifying.

“Okay, Gerit. You’re going to help us get Tally to the car. You think you can handle that? You look like you...might possibly have worked out some time in your life.” Raelle snickered and gave the instructions for him to pick her up slowly and bring her through doorways carefully to ensure she didn’t hit her ankle on anything else and make the injury worse.

She had to admit he looked awfully gallant with Tally in his arms, and her friend couldn’t stop gazing at him adoringly, as if he were some kind of handsome prince. Abigail was uncharacteristically quiet as they got into her limousine, only speaking to the driver to let them know he was taking them to the hospital. Gerit had insisted on joining them despite not knowing any of them and Tally certainly didn’t seem to be complaining. She had her head on his shoulder, the two of them talking softly as they rode to the hospital.

Once they’d arrived, he ran in to grab a wheelchair for Tally and helped her into it, wheeling her inside the emergency room. Raelle headed inside and Abigail told her driver to wait, giving him a thick wad of cash before following her friends into the hospital where Raelle worked. The blonde doctor took it upon herself to get Tally in quickly, bypassing the waiting room and ignoring any simpering looks thrown her way. 

Tally was back in the emergency room in record time and it was only a matter of minutes before there was a polite knock at the door. All of them were standing there, except for Tally, who was seated on the bed, her legs dangling over the edge, with the injured one propped up on the only chair in the room.

“Good evening, I’m Dr. Ramshorn. What brings you…oh. Dr. Collar, hello.” Abigail couldn’t help but notice the way the brunette’s face lit up, and the way Raelle’s cheeks immediately flushed. They were too cute and a nice distraction from the way Tally seemed to be all over this Gerit guy. She didn’t understand why he’d been so insistent on coming along. They didn’t even know each other. She felt a flash of anger as she looked at them but quickly turned her attention back toward Rae, who had momentarily lost the power of speech.

“Hi, Scylla,” Raelle clenched her jaw and gave her friends each the kind of look that told them to keep their mouths firmly shut. “This is my friend Tally. She injured herself tonight wearing some pretty high heels. I think it’s just a sprain, but…”

“You can never be too careful,” the dark haired doctor finished with a flourish of her pen. “Absolutely. Now, I trust Raelle’s assessment of the situation, but do you mind if I take a look? I’ll be ordering an X-Ray and someone will come for you in a few minutes to take you back to radiology.” Her gaze was firmly fixed on Tally, but Abigail could tell she was very tempted to look at Raelle. She knew the feeling well.

Their friend nodded emphatically and the doctor carefully inspected her ankle in much the same way Raelle had. She was a bit more thorough and checked out Tally’s feet, toes and legs, too, just in case. She had no other injuries, except for maybe wounded pride. Once she’d looked her over, Scylla told everyone how lovely it was to have met them before leaving the room.

Tally’s eyes immediately widened once they were alone and she was grinning at Raelle, who was trying very hard to avoid her gaze. “Wooooow, Rae, she is even hotter in person. Like, how do you not melt every time she looks at you with those big blue eyes?”

“What, do you have a crush on her now, too?” Raelle muttered bitterly, her gaze firmly fixed on the floor. “Somebody really should’ve cleaned up. The fuck, is that blood?” Ignoring her friends, she rifled through the cabinets and found some germicidal wipes, swiping the blood off of the tile just as the radiologist entered the room.

With furrowed brows, the woman observed Raelle on her hands and knees on the floor. “She works here,” Abigail explained as her friend got to her feet. Rae nodded, throwing the wipe into the biohazard bin before she fished her badge out of her bag, as if it were illegal to wipe up some blood.

“I’m a resident. Dr. Raelle Collar. I don’t think we’ve met,” Raelle added with a polite smile before pointing to the now shiny spot on the floor. “There was a puddle of blood. Somebody should’ve cleaned that up. Hope you don’t mind, I took it upon myself to.”

“I don’t care. Do you mop, too? Because someone down the hall just vomited pretty profusely.” Her tone was thick with sarcasm but it seemed to go over Raelle’s head at first, which made Abigail snicker. “I’m Dr. Quartermaine. You’re Tally?” She turned her attention toward the redhead, who nodded. The doctor waited for her patient to be loaded back up into the wheelchair before wheeling her down the hall and out of sight.

Gerit suddenly spoke up, having been nearly silent since they’d arrived in the emergency department. Abigail had almost forgotten he was there. “Uh, so, I just thought I’d ask, because Tally said something about your, uh, doctor friend being hot. Is she...a lesbian? Because I thought we had a moment.”

Abigail crossed her arms to her chest and gave him an intimidating look. Raelle glanced over at her, being reminded of how protective Abi had always been over Tally. Their friend had always been sensitive and for as long as she could remember, it had been up to Abigail to defend her from bullies and push them in the dirt. She was skeptical of anyone who showed interest in Tally, though, which struck Raelle as a little...much. 

“She’s pansexual,” Raelle murmured, figuring that Tally wouldn’t mind her saying so. She had been open about her sexuality ever since they were in high school and there was no real reason that she’d keep it a secret now.

Gerit’s nose wrinkled and there was a prominent crease between his eyebrows as he lifted one of them, considering Raelle’s words. After a moment of obvious confusion, he quietly asked, “Um, what does that mean?

Abigail couldn’t control herself, the words slipping out in an icy tone that matched her glare. “It means she’s open to falling for someone regardless of gender. Dumbass.”

“Abigail!” Raelle grabbed her arm and swiftly kicked her in the shin.

She had never rolled her eyes harder. “What?” She muttered before turning her attention back to Gerit and adding, “Come on, man. It’s 2020. Educate yourself.”

“I’m...sorry?”

Raelle took the next moment to suggest that Gerit go get some snacks, providing him with her stash of cash and coins she had in her bag explicitly to raid the vending machines while she was on shift. Once he was out of earshot, she berated Abigail for being so rude.

“What the hell is your deal, Abigail? Yeah, the guy seems kind of goofy, but he’s sweet and I think Tally’s into him. You need to back the hell off.”

Abigail put her hands on her hips as she tried to defend herself and stand her ground. “He’s a waiter, Rae. Tally could do so much better than…”

“Wow. Really? You’re _really_ being a snob about the fact that he doesn’t have money? After growing up with Tally and I? You know how poor I was growing up. Tally’s family wasn’t well off, either. But I didn’t think you cared about that kind of stuff anymore. I guess Tally was right about you.”

Abigail didn’t have to ask what Raelle meant when she’d said Tally was right about her. She could guess, given the issues they’d been having of late. Tally didn’t approve of the Bellweather Corp’s focus on profits over people, and while Abigail wasn’t crazy about it either, she hadn’t been in her position long enough to make any real change. Even as CEO her power was limited given that her parents and their friends were still on the board of directors. 

  
Raelle’s words genuinely hurt, to the point where she was starting to have pain in her chest. Abigail was nothing if not stoic and she refused to let anyone, even Raelle, see her cry. It was true that she didn’t think Gerit was good enough for Tally, but she also knew she was making unfair judgments and she didn’t know him at all. Abigail’s protectiveness over Tally had never been an issue for her before, but now it was becoming abundantly clear that maybe putting some distance between them was probably the best idea right now. Abigail was feeling too raw and if another barbed comment was lobbed at her by anyone, she would say something she would regret.

“You know what, I’m gonna go. I think you guys have this handled.” Abigail grabbed her coat and turned on her heel without another word, bumping into Gerit into the hallway and causing his armful of snacks to scatter all over the emergency room floor. She briefly considered helping him, but instead kept walking, cursing under her breath.

_Let them find their own ride home,_ Abigail thought bitterly as she got back into her limo, instructing the driver to take her back to her immaculate apartment. Hunched over in the back seat, she slid her fingers into her hair and pulled, hard. Without warning, she let out a shriek that would have scared her driver, had he not heard her do so many times before. Her outbursts of anger were probably normal to him by now, which really should have been an indication of how much she could likely benefit from therapy.


	4. Friction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tally finds out Abigail abandoned her at the hospital and Raelle has an important conversation with Scylla.

_ May 2020 (continued) _

As Abigail was on her way home, Tally was being returned to the room where Raelle and Gerit were already chowing down on snacks. She was pleased to see the variety and was admittedly starving given that she hadn’t eaten at the banquet due to her nerves. She was halfway through a pack of Oreos when she realized Abigail still hadn’t come back. Raelle hadn’t told her that she’d left and Gerit hadn’t mentioned the way she’d barreled into him in the hallway. 

“Where’d Abi go?” She questioned with her teeth covered in Oreo crumbs.

Raelle knew she should tell the truth, but she couldn’t exactly explain the argument they’d had in front of Gerit. Besides, she didn’t want to cause any unnecessary trouble between Abigail and Tally, even if she was pissed at her. “Oh. She had to go,” she explained simply, keeping it vague before adding, “She said sorry.”

The fact that Abigail had just left before finding out if Tally was okay really bothered her. To her, that meant that her friend didn’t care about her at all. There was no excuse that would make that okay, unless she’d had some other emergency. Raelle didn’t mention anything like that and she was too hurt to ask for more details. Instead she focused on stuffing her face alongside Gerit, who was beginning to look more and more like a good option for her. Abigail had made it clear that she didn’t feel the same way about her even after Abigail’s own realization of being bisexual in college; clearly it was time to move on. He was as good a person as any to move on with. He was handsome, charming and had a nice, positive energy that rivaled her own. As they chatted animatedly together while waiting for the X-Ray results, Raelle slipped from the room.

She was still shaken from her quarrel with Abigail and she needed to get some air, so she went around back. Raelle wasn’t expecting for anyone to be around, but this was where many of the residents went to catch their breath most nights, so she shouldn’t have been surprised to see Scylla sitting at the foot of her favorite tree. The doctor had a piece of licorice in her mouth and appeared to be watching a video on her phone, not noticing Raelle’s presence until she’d sidled up next to her.

“Oh, Goddess!” Scylla cried in shock, her hand over her heart as her phone clattered to the grass. “You scared the shit out of me.”

The use of the word Goddess surprised her and Raelle couldn’t help but wonder if Scylla was Wiccan. She’d been interested in Wicca as a moody teenager, but had never actually met someone who practiced. She smiled as she reached for Scylla’s phone and returned it to her hand, fingers brushing her palm for just a second. “Sorry. I just needed a minute alone,” she explained as she leaned against the tree trunk.

“I can go back in-”

“No, that’s okay. This is better. But it is pretty shitty of you to be out here eating licorice when you should be telling Tally that her ankle isn’t broken.” She teased, despite knowing that it was the radiologist’s job to read the X-Ray and to interpret the data for Scylla to later give to the patient. It was just too fun to give her shit.

Scylla grabbed another stick of licorice and threw it directly at Raelle’s face, landing with a smack against her cheekbone. She laughed, catching it before it hit the ground and taking a bite of the candy without breaking eye contact with her fellow resident. “Anyway, are you okay? You seem...not yourself.”

She didn’t feel like Scylla could possibly know her well enough to make that assumption, but then again, she had told her she needed a minute alone. That in itself signaled that Raelle wasn’t exactly having the best night. 

“I’ll be fine. Just had a fight with my friend.”

She nodded, carefully unraveling her red licorice from itself, more playing with the candy than eating it. “I see. Do you want to talk about it?”

Raelle had never really been the ‘talking about your feelings’ type. She usually kept everything close to the vest, but there was something about Scylla that made her want to open up. Those blue eyes fixed on her own just made her want to melt.

“Things have been tense between my friends lately. Abigail’s family runs this huge medical device company as a subset of their drug manufacturing company. She took it over last year, but she’s worked there since college. When I got into the accident, Tally made this hand for me. It was the first thing like that she ever did. She built her own company from the ground up. It took a lot of work, but she made a name for herself. Now her company is just as successful as Abigail’s.”

“And it’s caused friction.”

“Yeah. We’ve all been friends since we were kids, but now when we go out for lunch or whatever, I’m trying to play peacekeeper between the two of them. Tonight, Abi and I went to this benefit or whatever that Tally’s company was throwing. They were debuting their new fancy hearing aids. We were all really proud of Tally. Abi said something to her. I don’t know what, then the next thing I know, Tally’s running off to the bathroom to cry. Just when I got her to start opening up to me, Abigail walked in and spooked her. She went back out and got herself hurt, probably because she was still upset.”

“Okay, and who’s the guy?” Scylla was good at listening and for once in her life, Raelle felt like she couldn’t stop talking. For someone who was usually quiet, she had a whole lot to say and no problem saying it.

“That’s Gerit. He’s the waiter Tally ran into when she twisted her ankle. He helped us get her in the car and came with us, because he wanted to make sure she’s okay. He seems sweet, but Abigail’s been nothing but rude to him this whole time. I confronted her about it and she said it’s because he’s not good enough for Tally. She’s being a judgmental asshole and I’m fucking sick of it. I called her out on it and she got pissed and left. Then I had to make up some lame ass excuse when Tally asked where she was. It’s just like Abi to bail.”

Scylla nodded thoughtfully. “What exactly did you say to her before she left?” She took a few bites of her licorice as Raelle thought about it.

She tried to replay the conversation in her head and after a moment, she recalled the exact phrasing she’d used. “I said, ‘I guess Tally was right about you.’ Then she said she was gonna go and she thought we had this handled.”

“Hm. When you said Tally was right, what did you mean?”

“That she doesn’t care about us anymore. Our friendship. It’s...sometimes it feels like she’s just phoning it in. All she does is work. It’s like she never has time for us anymore. We’re all busy, thanks to our jobs, but we used to make time for each other.”

Scylla sighed, intending to be gentle about her suggestion, but hoping that maybe Raelle could see past her anger a little bit to consider what else might’ve been going on. It didn’t sound so cut and dry to her. “I don’t know your friends, obviously. But is it possible there’s something going on with Abigail that you don’t know about? It sounds to me like she’s dealing with something and lashing out at you guys for some reason. Does...she have anyone else to talk to?”

That suggestion took Raelle by surprise. “Oh. Um, I guess that’s possible. She never talks about any other friends. I think it’s just us and her family.”

“So if she’s going through something, she’d talk to…?” Scylla posed the question and Raelle’s stomach sank, because she knew the answer without even thinking about it.

“No one. I guess. She tends to bottle up her feelings.”

When someone bottled up their feelings, their anger often came out in unproductive ways. Raelle knew that, because she did the same thing. That was why she and Abigail had always been such a volatile combination especially in their teenage years. Everything felt out of balance when Abigail and Tally were the ones fighting.

Scylla finished up the piece of licorice she was working on before offering her perspective once again. She didn’t know if Raelle was receptive to advice, but she couldn’t help herself. “Maybe you should reach out to her. I know you’re pissed, but...I think she might be hurting. People don’t usually act that way for no reason.”

“You don’t know Abigail.”

“You’re right. I don’t. So I could be completely full of shit,” she smirked, nudging Raelle with her shoulder and nearly jumping out of her skin when her pager went off. “Mmm. Duty calls.” Scylla gave her a wink before getting up and brushing off her scrubs. “You can have the rest of those. I think you need them more than me.”

Her gaze casually followed the other resident as she walked back inside, lingering for a little too long on her rear end. Thankfully, Scylla didn’t glance back over her shoulder, too intent on answering her page. Raelle was pretty sure that just during that brief conversation, her crush on Scylla had grown exponentially. She was incredibly kind and thoughtful but apparently she was also good at reading people, which Raelle had never been able to do. She was lucky enough to be able to understand her own emotions sometimes.

She continued leaning against the tree trunk, eating a few more pieces of licorice until her stomach started to feel like it might burst. Raelle had definitely overdone it with the junk food and now she might end up getting sick because of it. _ Serves you right,  _ she told herself with a groan. It had been quite the night.

Just as she suspected, Tally only had a sprain, not a break, and for that Raelle was grateful. She was more than happy to teach her friend to use the crutches, but that was Scylla’s job and she looked so damn cute doing it. Before the discharge notes could be written, Raelle reminded Tally that they didn’t have a ride since Abigail stranded them and she’d go ahead and order an Uber. 

When Scylla delivered the discharge papers, Tally was talking distractedly to Gerit, laughing at all of his lame jokes the way girls always did when they thought a guy was cute. Raelle took the opportunity to pull Scylla aside, thanking her for her perspective and offering her the rest of the Twizzlers that were left after her stomach started hurting.

“That’s okay, you can keep them. Maybe you’ll eat them later and think of me,” Scylla’s voice had a flirtatious lilt to it and Raelle reached over to pick a piece of lint off of her overcoat.  _ I have no ulterior motives,  _ she told herself as she looked into the doctor’s gorgeous eyes,  _ yeah right, you useless lesbian. _ “Listen, I, uh, know our schedules are more than a little crazy, but I was thinking if we ever got lucky enough to be off at the same time, I’d really like to get to know you better. On a more...personal level.”

Tally had apparently been listening in, because she interrupted, intending to clarify Scylla’s intentions. “Just to be clear, you _ are _ asking her out, right?” 

Raelle could’ve killed Tally right then and there were it not for Scylla’s genuine answer paired with a perfect smile. She knew her friend was asking because Raelle could misread situations often, and it was a relief to hear that she was definitely asking her out.

“Yeah, Tally. I’m asking her out.” Scylla laughed, gently touching Raelle’s arm and sending electricity jolting throughout her body. “The question is, are you interested?”

She had never said yes faster in her life and she blushed deeply once she realized how overeager she sounded. Scylla definitely didn’t seem to mind. “Good,” she chuckled, brushing past Raelle to give Tally her discharge instructions, which included helpful information about keeping her ankle elevated and icing it. She would have to take it easy for a while, which was never an easy thing for Tally Craven to do. Luckily, she had some pretty great friends to help her.

“I just need you to sign here and here. You can take these papers home. You’ll need to stay off that ankle for six weeks. Do you have any questions for me?”

Tally shook her head, signing the papers and shoving the others into her large purse, which Abigail always called a black hole. She’d lost things in there and never found them again. Her mind was still on Abigail, hurt that she’d abandoned her with no explanation. Trying to forget it, she casually watched as Scylla interacted with Raelle on her way out and grinned at how smitten her friend seemed to be. 

Getting up on the crutches was tricky at first, given that she wasn’t the most graceful person, but with Raelle and Gerit’s help, she managed. Tally would’ve much preferred to use the wheelchair. At the same time, she was a proud woman and didn’t want the doctor to see her getting wheeled out of there and going too easy on herself. She was huffing and puffing by the time they made it out to the Uber and her breathing didn’t exactly settle down when she sat in the middle of the backseat, her leg quite literally touching Gerit’s. He was insanely cute and sweet, not to mention thoughtful in the way he’d brought her snacks. The way to Tally’s heart had always been food. She felt like it was a sign from the universe to forget about her stupid feelings and go for it with Gerit instead. 

Raelle was going to be dropped off first, because she lived closest to the hospital. She checked with Tally first to make sure she was comfortable being alone with Gerit in the car. She’d assured Raelle that she’d be fine, waving at her as she exited the vehicle. Tally would be taken home next, since she lived closer to Raelle than Gerit did. Despite the fact that there was no third person in the back seat any longer, the two of them were still sitting very close, making her nervous. The idea that something bad could happen while she was alone with a man who was technically a stranger never even occurred to Tally. She was probably too trusting, but he seemed like a genuinely good guy, and he seemed as interested in her as she was in him. She decided it was best to just go for it, so she turned to Gerit and told him, quite matter-of-factly, that she’d like to go out on a date with him sometime.

Much to her pleasure, he immediately agreed and they exchanged numbers as the vehicle slowed in front of her place. She briefly considered inviting him in but decided against it, not even going in for a kiss. She did, however, give him a hug and Tally Craven didn’t half ass her hugs. He was warm and he smelled nice, which made it difficult to untangle herself from him and go home where she’d be alone. He helpfully assisted her onto her crutches, which were going to take some time for her to learn, and even offered to help her get anything she needed inside before he left. It was kind, but she said no, knowing if he came in she’d be too tempted to initiate something she was in no state of mind to.

As she glanced at her phone for the first time in hours, Tally noticed she had several texts and missed calls from Abigail. Just seeing her name and photo made her stomach hurt. She wasn’t ready to face any of it, and so, she decided to go to bed.


	5. Jealousy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vignettes of jealousy.

_ May 2008 _

Abigail’s eyes widened as she saw herself in the mirror, wearing her prom dress with her hair and makeup immaculately done. She had pleaded with her mother to help Tally & Raelle have the prom of their dreams, too, because they couldn’t afford fancy dresses or to go to the hair salon. She even got her mother to spring for a limo, which was pretty much prom standard as far as Abigail was concerned. 

It was their senior year and each of them would be going to a different school following graduation. For the first time in their lives, they would be separated. That was why Abigail was clinging to every single high school memory they could make. She had no delusions that Raelle or Tally would have time for her, nor she for them. Their new lives would be starting and all she could hope was theirs was the kind of friendship that could withstand time and distance. She didn’t want them to be her school friends. She wanted them by her side on her wedding day, smiling as she married the man of her dreams. 

Adil, her boyfriend, was very sweet, but he was not husband material. They were likely going to break up after graduation, because Abigail didn’t have any desire to try long distance. College was about experimenting and having fun, and she thought having a boyfriend would put a huge damper on everything. It was better to make a clean break. But for now, they could have fun together. Raelle and Tally weren’t currently in relationships, as Raelle and her girlfriend had just broken up and Tally had been single for a while. They were going to go together as friends. Abigail felt a little bad that she was going with Adil, but not bad enough to ditch him for her girls.

“Oh, Tally, you look…amazing,” The moment Abigail’s gaze fell onto Tally, she was shocked, having never seen her friend all dolled up before. She was wearing the most incredible deep green dress that made her red hair pop. 

“Thank you! So do you.” There was a broad grin on Tally’s face as she spun around for them and Abigail subconsciously bit her lower lip as her eyes drifted over her body, noticing how tight the dress was around her rear end. She told herself those thoughts were normal, that she was just appreciating her friend’s beauty, but as Raelle came out, she didn’t have thoughts like those. Then again, she was wearing a suit, though she did look dapper as hell.

Raelle smirked, linking her arm with Tally’s. “I’m going to have the hottest date in the room tonight. You really do look incredible, Tal.” If Abigail didn’t know better, she would’ve thought Raelle was flirting with Tally. Raelle had come out as a lesbian many years ago, but it wasn’t until sophomore year that Tally had officially labeled herself as pansexual. The thought that they could end up together never occurred to her, because she’d assumed their relationship was only platonic. Now, she was starting to question that logic, as well as the strange feeling she got when she thought about them together. Abigail recognized the feeling as jealousy, but told herself it was because she thought it would change the trio’s friendship. Little did she know at the time, it was a lot more than that.

The plan was to go out to dinner before prom at a nice, romantic restaurant that she’d made reservations for months ahead of time. Abigail did feel a little weird about that now after what Raelle had just said to Tally, though. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to deal with it if she had to watch them flirting in front of her all night. Adil showed up at the house and gave her the elaborate corsage that she’d insisted on, and her mother took pictures of it all. Abigail even kicked Adil out of some of the pictures so she could have some with her girls, for after they broke up. 

They posed for a myriad of photos, including the Charlie’s Angels pose and her mother had already taken tons of candids while they were getting ready. She had a digital camera she’d considered bringing with them, but she ultimately decided it was better to live in the moment than worry about capturing the memories on film. The four of them piled into the limo together, drinking the sparkling grape juice like it was wine. Adil announced that he’d brought a flask, but Abigail was not about to get messy tonight. Raelle took a few grateful sips, though, and like Abigail, Tally abstained.

After entering the large banquet hall, Abigail grabbed Adil and made a beeline to get their photos taken, smartly ascertaining that it would be better to do now before she got all sweaty and gross from dancing. Tally and Raelle followed suit, giggling as they posed together with Raelle’s arms around Tally from behind. They did a second photo with Raelle kissing Tally’s cheek. Abigail didn’t see what happened after that because she took Adil to the dance floor. She avoided her friends for the first half of the dance and she wasn’t too nice to her boyfriend either, not even understanding why she was feeling so grumpy to begin with. She stole Adil’s flask midway through the prom, pouring the entirety of its contents into her cup of punch and downing it quickly.

It definitely was not Abigail Bellweather’s finest moment. As prom queen was being announced, she could feel the alcohol taking effect. She had never drank before, and it hit her like a ton of bricks, so much so that she didn’t even hear her own name being called over the speakers.

“Uh, are you gonna go up?” Adil asked, nudging her as she stared at Tally & Raelle.

Blinking, she turned to her boyfriend. “What?”

“You just won prom queen, Abigail.”

Her eyes went wide and as she looked around, everyone was staring at her, some of them still clapping. Abigail started toward the stage to accept her crown and tripped, over the bottom of her dress, most likely, landing with a thud against the corner of the stage. What happened next was like a scene from a horror movie. Probably Carrie, if we’re getting specific. As Abigail fell, her chin hit the corner of the stage at just the right angle and before she realized she was bleeding, her classmates began to back away. None of them made a move to help her until Raelle ran to her side.

Abigail clutched her chin, crying, the guy on stage not knowing what to do with the crown. He glanced over at Raelle, waved the crown in the air, then moved on to announce the prom king. Predictably, Adil won, and under normal circumstances, he and Abigail probably would’ve danced together. Talk about the prom of her dreams. Tally grabbed her crown and sash as Raelle put pressure on her wound, trying to stop the bleeding. She yelled for someone to call an ambulance, because she was pretty sure that Abigail needed stitches.

She did need stitches, for the record. Four of them.

That wasn’t even the worst part. When her mother showed up at the emergency room, she knew right away that her daughter was drunk. Abigail received the grounding of a lifetime, and her friends’ parents were called to pick them up. Adil hadn’t even come to the hospital with her and she got a text from one of her friends breaking the news to her that he’d been making out with some girl for the past fifteen minutes. She didn’t really love him or anything and she planned to break it off anyway, but it was the cherry on top of a terrible night.

Raelle’s parents came to get her first, leaving Tally waiting at Abigail’s bedside. Her mother had gone out to talk to the doctor privately, probably about making sure there wasn’t a scar, so the two of them were left alone together. Tally scooted closer and took her hand in hers, smiling sadly down at her friend. She knew how much prom had meant to her and how mortified she probably was about the spill she’d taken. She’d nearly forgotten about the crown and sash, but leaned down to grab the tiara out of her bag and placed it gently on Abigail’s head.

“Sorry your dress is ruined, but you’re still a queen to me,” she whispered before laying the sash across her chest, not wanting to jostle her too much in the process of trying to put it on her. “It’s not a good night, huh?” Tally touched her cheek and she couldn’t help but lean into her touch because of how nice it felt. “I know you really wanted it to be perfect.”

Abigail shrugged her shoulders noncommittally. “No such thing. It’s about time I learned that.”

“You know I love you, right?”

“Yeah, Tally,” she smiled, but then winced because of how it pulled at her chin. “I know.”

When her mother entered the room, she did so with Tally’s mom in tow. That meant saying their goodbyes, and Abigail being left alone with her mother to lecture her again. It had been a long, emotional night, and by the time she was released from the hospital, the only thing she wanted to do was get some rest.

* * *

  
  
  


_ April 2019 _

Today was meant to be special. It was Abigail’s twenty-ninth birthday and Tally had been planning this for months. She knew how her friend felt about turning thirty next year and that she was feeling more than melancholy about being one birthday closer to that arbitrary number. She had even tasked Abigail’s boyfriend, Paul, with taking her out for the day so that she could come home to a surprise party. Paul was a nice guy by all accounts, but despite having been together for over a year now, Tally didn’t see anything real between him and Abigail. Maybe she was projecting, but there was no spark there. Not comparable to their own, anyway....

Raelle was helping her set up the decorations as the party guests would be arriving at Abigail's apartment soon. It was elaborate, with a handmade sign, streamers, balloons, everything. Tally didn’t know how to do anything halfway. She had even baked a birthday cake for Abigail and she’d never made a cake before, so it didn’t look as good as she was hoping. She only hoped it tasted better. She bought a backup cake though, just in case.

“You never do anything like this for my birthday,” Raelle pointed out as she finished with the streamers, wiping the sweat from the back of her forehead. “What’s up with that?”

Tally laughed as she flipped through Abigail’s CD collection, which was admittedly small thanks to the switch to digital music, and tried to find something fun to put on in the background. “You would hate something like this and Abigail loves it when people make a big deal out of her. You know how she is.”

“You’re probably right,” she snickered as she snuck up behind Tally and ripped the Spice Girls CD out of her hand. “I can’t believe she still has this. This is the one we have to play. Brings back so many memories…” Rae turned on the sound system, which was equipped with Bluetooth and would probably be easier, but there was something about playing an album that felt more special. She popped the CD into the player and put it on shuffle before laying the empty case on top of the system. “Alright, what’s next?”

“Now we wait. So, what did you get her?” Tally gestured to the presents they had both placed on the living room table, deciding it would be the gift table. She was too curious for her own good. Her favorite part of other people’s birthday parties was watching them open their gifts.

Raelle plopped down on Abigail’s couch and looked over at her friend incredulously. “I’m not gonna tell you that,” she rolled her eyes and crossed her arms against her chest.

“It better not be a gag gift. You know she hates those.”

She was suddenly very serious. “Psh. No. I wouldn’t do that. If I DID get her a gag gift, I would also get her a regular gift, because I don’t really want to be murdered in my sleep.” At least Tally wasn’t the only one who feared Abigail’s wrath.

“You got a gag gift, didn’t you?” Tally giggled, because Raelle was so damned predictable. She did the same thing to her every year. She lived for the look on her friends’ faces whenever they opened whatever stupid thing she’d gotten them. Last year, Tally had received a box of bacon bandages, and for the record, she’d used them all by August. She was very accident prone, and went through bandages far more quickly than most people. She thought they were funny and didn’t mind the gag gifts, but Abigail could be much more serious sometimes. She didn’t have the same sense of humor they did.

“Fuck yeah I did.”

Both of them laughed as Raelle described the tiny plastic hands she’d bought Abigail as a joke on some stupid website. She had also gotten her a very nice pair of pumps that would go with nearly every one of her outfits, because even Rae wasn’t that mean. Tally had decided to go thoughtful with her gift, because she knew Abigail was rich and had everything she ever wanted. She didn’t want to give her something that would be indistinguishable from all of the things she already owned. 

It had quite literally taken hundreds of hours of programming to create the TaloveBot, which had a rotation of encouraging phrases, from “I’m so proud of you!” to “Remember, you are never alone.” She had painstakingly recorded her own voice and while it was a bit bizarre to hear it come out of a tiny little robot, it was also so cute she could hardly stand it. She knew that Abigail could get down on herself sometimes and didn’t always reach out when she was feeling this way. It would be like having a little pocket Tally who could make her feel better. 

She might have gotten carried away. In addition to the cake, there was also a handmade birthday card with an admittedly long letter inside, because Tally was above all else, a softy, and had to tell Abigail how much she loved her. It really should’ve been obvious to anyone who read her cards for the past 10 years or so, that she was completely and utterly in love with her best friend.

As the guests began to arrive, they positioned themselves around the apartment and once Tally got the text from Paul, they turned off the music and the lights and hid in the shadows. The look on Abigail’s face was worth all of the effort she’d gone to. It meant the world to her to make her smile.

Thankfully the cake tasted better than it looked, though watching Paul feed Abigail like it was their fucking wedding day quite literally turned her stomach. After the cake and ice cream came gifts and Abigail opened Tally’s last. It was unmistakably her gift due to the vibrant wrapping paper it was covered in. The tiny bot was in a box and when she opened it, Abigail looked a bit confused. She showed her the button on the back, as well as the option to have the robot on a timer instead of as needed. Abigail pressed the button and of course, the first phrase it spit out was “I love you!” Tally’s face reddened as everyone stared at her but Abigail was grinning, throwing her arms around her in a warm hug and suddenly, she didn’t care what anyone else thought.

The party looked like it was going to go on for a while and watching Abigail and Paul together was starting to become too much for Tally. She always tried to be on her best behavior, which came easily to her because she could never be mean to anyone, but her jealousy was intense and she had to avoid him as much as possible. The occasions where she was trapped with them together were rare enough, but this party was going on long enough for it to wear on her. She decided to go out on the balcony to get some air, leaning against the railing as she watched the cars on the nearby highway.

Tally nearly jumped when she felt arms slipping around her, but as she turned around, she saw with relief that it was Abigail and she was all by herself.

“H-hey,” she tried and failed to remain casual, reminding herself that this was her best friend and to be nervous right now would be very weird and obvious.

“I wanted to come out here and thank you. Your gift was really sweet.”

Abigail’s arms were still around her and they were standing very close to one another. Tally could almost feel her breath against her cheek and her heart thumped loudly in her chest. “I just wanted to make you feel special, Abi. You deserve that.”

“You did,” she assured her with a smile that looked...almost sad. “You always do.”

They hugged again, just as before, but this hug felt more intimate, not just because they were in private. Abigail held her tightly and buried her face against Tally’s neck. She could really lose herself in this, she realized as her friend reluctantly pulled away. Her dark eyes burned into her lighter ones and Tally’s gaze drifted from Abigail’s eyes to her lips. She took a shaky breath, trying to steady herself. She couldn’t kiss her right now, no matter how badly she wanted to. Abigail was in a relationship. She loved Paul. Paul. Fucking Paul.

As if she’d summoned him by simply thinking his name, Paul appeared in the doorway, trying to get Abigail’s attention. Tally saw a flicker of some buried emotion on her friend’s face before she turned away from her, smiling at the man she loved and taking his hand so that he could lead her back inside.

It was so fucking hard watching her with him. Every time she saw them together it was like there was a knife buried in her stomach and every look, every touch twisted it in deeper. Tally didn’t know why she kept torturing herself. If only she could will her feelings away.

If only it was that easy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just wanna say thanks for the love, guys!


	6. Realizations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some progress is made in Tally & Abigail's relationship.

_May 2020_

It had been nearly a week since Tally had sprained her ankle and Abigail had bailed on her at the hospital. She hadn’t heard a single word from her (since Tally had ignored her that first night) and frankly, she was hurt and starting to get pretty pissed. Work had become increasingly more difficult given that she had to hobble around on crutches and at the insistence of her very kind assistant, she had decided to take a week’s vacation. She had been stressed the entire time leading up to the release of the SmartAid and this would be a much needed reprieve. The problem was, she had no idea what to do with herself. She had been texting back and forth with Gerit, who continued to be a sweetheart, but the person she really wanted to talk to was Abigail. She didn’t know what she’d done to make her so upset but she knew that Abi could be stubborn and if she didn’t reach out first, she might just never hear from her again.

She typed a quick text message before picking up one of the new books she’d gotten from the public library a few weeks ago but had since gone untouched.

**Hey, I’m sure you’re busy, but I was hoping we could talk?**

Tally was a couple chapters into the novel by the time she received a response. She slipped a bookmark between the pages of the book, placed it gently on her coffee table and picked up her phone to read the message that her friend had sent.

_Yeah, I guess so._

**I feel like I did something to piss you off, but I don’t know what it was.**

_Oh. Well, that was more Rae than you, but she did say something…_

**What?**

_She said “ I guess Tally was right about you.”_

**Gonna need more context, Abi.**

_I said something about Gerit being a waiter and she went off on me for being judgmental and caring about things like money._

**Okay. I’m pretty sure she was talking about the general...issues we’ve been having as of late.**

_What issues?_

**You know. The work stuff. Priorities. Putting money over helping people.**

_Tally, Bellweather Corp is not my company. Not really. I'm the CEO in name only. I’m a pawn. I can’t be held responsible for the way my parents look at their customers._

**That’s a cop out and you know it. You have sway and regardless of what you say, you ARE the CEO and you DO have power. I’m not saying you need to completely rehaul the company in one day. There’s something to be said for incremental change.**

_Oh, well, since you’re such a genius, what exactly do you suggest I do?_

**Have a frank conversation with your parents about the direction the company is going in. Demand they work with Medicaid, for starters. Do you know how prohibitive your costs are? There’s a reason my company is doing well. We are accessible to more patients.**

_Like it’s that easy._

**It’s a conversation.**

_With my parents._

**You’re a grown adult, Abigail, are you seriously still afraid of them?**

_Fuck you._

**Abi.**

_No. Don’t even go there with me._

**I’m doing fine by the way. You know, since you asked.**

_Tally, I am not doing this with you. Stop trying to provoke me._

**I’m sorry. I’m not trying to. I’m just...hurt. I feel like you don’t even care about me anymore.**

_Firstly, I texted you that night to make sure everything was okay. You never responded. Secondly, that couldn’t be more untrue. I care about you so much, Tal. I was upset about my argument with Raelle and I was afraid I would say something I’d regret. You know how angry I can get sometimes. I didn’t want to make a bad situation worse. I just needed some space to sort through my feelings. I hope you can understand that. I hate the way things have changed between us. I’d give anything for it to go back the way it was before._

**You and me both.**

_So why don’t we try?_

**Okay, sure.**

_Did you hear about that medical device convention in Portland?_

**Yeah. That’s next month, right?**

_Right. What if we went together?_

**Really? Are you sure that’s a good idea? It’s a work thing, and that seems to be a point of contention between us…**

_I think we’d have fun together. Maybe we could even share a room._ 😉 _Order some room service, drink some of those tiny little drinks from the minibar, wear the cozy robes and watch some HBO?_

**Well when you put it like that, it doesn’t sound half bad.**

_Maybe it can help us...reconnect or whatever._

**I’d like that. Really. ❤️**

_Me too._ 😭 _I miss you._

**I miss you too. So much.**

_Can I tell you I love you?_

**Of course you can…**

_Okay. I love you._

**I love you, too. 🥰**

_What are you doing?_

**Finally reading this book I checked out from the library two weeks ago….**

_Nerd._ 🤓

**You’re one to talk!!!!**

_Oh, please._

**You were valedictorian.**

_True. But I was also prom queen, so that nullifies any dorkiness._

**There’s a difference between a nerd and a dork. You are not a dork. You ARE a nerd.**

_You are so rude to me, smh. Anyway, can I ask about the waiter?_

**We’ve been talking.**

_Talking or TALKING talking?_

**The second one. I guess.**

_Oh. You like him?_

**I think so. I haven’t seen him again. We’ve just been texting. We did Facetime yesterday.**

_I’m sorry I was being judgy. You know I just want you to be happy, right?_

**I know you do. And for the record, you deserve happiness too.**

_Sometimes I wonder about that._

**Don’t do that. You’re an incredible person, Abigail. If I’ve made you question that, I’m sorry.**

_No, it’s fine. Don’t worry about me. I should probably go. But let me know if you need anything, okay? Even if it’s just an itch you can’t reach lol_

**Are you okay?**

_I will be._

**Abigail? What does that mean?**

_It means I’ll get over it._

**Get over what?**

_Nothing. I don’t want to talk about it._

**Okay…..**

_Night x_

Her conversation with Abigail had left her feeling more than a little confused. There was something major going on with her friend and she didn’t know what it was. She had no CLUE what it was, and she used to be able to read her so well. It worried her that she didn’t want to talk about it. Abigail had a habit of retreating into herself and she could become self-destructive. She knew that Abi was angry with Raelle and things were weird with her, so she wasn’t sure that she had anyone to talk to. That only made her worry more.

The feelings she had for Abigail were ever present, like a thousand ton elephant sitting on her chest. It was always there, making her feel like she couldn’t breathe. When Abigail had told them about the girl she hooked up with in college, Tally had been shocked and excited. As far as she knew, Abigail was straight and this was the first indication that maybe she wasn’t. Not long after her experimentation, she had declared herself bisexual and came out to Tally & Raelle. She thought maybe something might happen between them. But nothing ever did.

The three of them had grown up together. They were almost like sisters, though Tally had her own actual sisters, and being in love with Abigail felt wrong because of it. She’d hidden from it for so long and even now that she’d accepted her feelings, she’d refused to disclose them to anyone. Sometimes she was so sure that someone would find out, but no one seemed to notice. Least of all Abigail.

Logically she knew that just because Abigail was bisexual didn’t mean she was attracted to her. But learning that it was a possibility, no matter how small, had given her hope. It has been ten years now. Nothing had changed. If something was going to happen between them, it would’ve happened already.

* * *

  
  


_October 2010_

She first met Libba in one of her required English courses freshman year and though they had interacted a few times, Abigail didn’t really know her. They had a handful of classes together since then because they were in the same year and had gotten friendly in class, but had never spent time together outside of it. That night, she was at one of her sorority parties when she ran into Libba again, immediately noticing the recognizable small-statured woman with untamable curls and a never-fading smirk. There was something about her that Abigail found incredibly attractive and she was feeling just a little buzzed, so maybe that contributed a little bit.

“Hey, Libba, right?” She tried to be casual, though her gaze was not behaving so well. Abigail wasn’t being subtle about checking her out. “Do you want to dance with me? You seem like you’d be fun.”

She wasn’t wrong. Libba was a riot and while Abigail was a legitimately good dancer, the other girl was a complete clown. Some of her moves were actually not bad, but she seemed determined to make Abigail laugh, not like it was hard especially once she’d been drinking. 

“You know, I always thought you were really cute,” Libba confessed with a grin, leaning in and brushing her fingertip against her cheek. “You’ve got an eyelash,” she explained, holding out her finger in front of Abigail and sure enough, one of her eyelashes was on her fingertip. “Blow. Make a wish. Don’t let a good eyelash go to waste.”

She did as asked, closing her eyes as she blew on the eyelash and made a wish. The very next moment, Libba’s lips were crashing against hers, and she found she didn’t hate it. Maybe wishes really do come true, she thought as she returned her fervent kisses, not caring who might see them. Abigail was feeling a lot, but right now confused wasn’t one of them. Libba wasn’t the first girl she’d ever kissed. She made out with some girl at a party on a dare from her high school boyfriend but this was different. She was very attracted to Libba and it was like things were finally clicking into place for her.

Abigail boldly led her upstairs to her room and one thing led to another until they started fooling around. It was hot and heavy and she had an amazing time, but it didn’t mean anything. Once they were finished, laying in bed together still trying to catch their breath, she glanced over at Libba and didn’t feel anything. Anything other than arousal, anyway. It had been a few months since she’d seen Tally, but she definitely felt something when she looked at her. She felt a lot of things, most of them confusing, and now...now she understood what it was. When she was kissing Libba, it was Tally she was thinking of. Tally, who meant more to her than anyone else in the world.

Not so politely, she threw Libba out of her room and locked the door, hiding beneath the covers of her four poster bed, trying to hold back tears while she had a major revelation. Abigail felt herself begin to panic because she knew having feelings for her best friend could quite literally ruin their friendship. If Tally didn’t feel the same, which she likely didn’t, if she was being honest with herself, then things would get weird and they would grow apart. If by some miracle Tally did feel the same way, they could date, break up and then things would get weird and they would grow apart. No matter what happened, it would turn out badly.

Abigail needed to get over this, but she didn’t know how. She’d always heard the best way to get over someone is to get under someone else. Libba probably wouldn’t want to see her again after she’d just kicked her out, not even giving her time to catch her breath. The person who’d come up with that suggestion was probably sleeping with the first person. Abigail’s feelings for Tally went deeper than that. While she had most certainly fantasized about hooking up with her, it wasn’t about sex. It was about their connection. Even now as they attended different schools hundreds of miles away, she could feel that connection, her heart aching as she remembered how it felt to hold Tally’s hand.

Her phone buzzed loudly against her thigh and she picked it up to see that she had a text message from Raelle. She quickly fired off a response and decided to send a message in their group chat, asking if the two of them were available to talk. Once she received a message to the affirmative, she called Rae first, then added Tally to the call.

“Hi guys,” Abigail hoped they couldn’t tell how drunk she was.

Unfortunately Tally knew her too well, laughing as she asked, “Been drinking?”

“How did you know?”

“You always call us when you’re drunk,” Rae pointed out with a chuckle.

“I do?”

“YOU DO,” they both said in unison.

Abigail rolled her eyes as she held the phone up to her ear. With them roasting her about being drunk, she wasn’t even sure she wanted to tell them what was up now. As she grew quiet, so did her friends, at least until Tally couldn’t take it any longer. “What’s up? Something’s going on.”

She sighed. “I just did something. Someone. A...girl. I just had sex with a girl.”

“Whaaaaat?” Raelle remarked, sounding genuinely surprised. “Who?”

So she told them about the whole encounter, in more detail than she would’ve normally given her friends about any other sexual experience, but needing to hear their perspective. Abigail couldn’t help but notice how uncharacteristically quiet Tally was and wondered if maybe that meant something. Maybe she was looking too much into this, but is it possible she was...jealous?

“I think I’m bisexual,” Abigail confessed, “I’ve been questioning it for a while, but this just makes it all the more obvious to me now. Wait, you’re both gay, did you know I wasn’t straight?”

Raelle chuckled and she could practically see her smile even though she was halfway across the country. “I hate to say this, but no. I guess I really do have the worst gaydar ever.”

“Are you going to see her again?” Tally broke her silence, managing to sound completely casual about it. Maybe Abigail was seeing things that weren’t there. It wouldn’t be the first time. But she also hadn’t answered her earlier question.

She shrugged her shoulders and let out a sigh. “I don’t think so. I threw her out of the room so fast, I don’t think she’ll be eager to repeat the experience.”

Tally quietly asked, “Are you going to tell your parents?” She knew how complicated Abigail’s relationship was with both of her parents, most especially her mother.

“About having sex with a girl at a party? No.” She was mostly being facetious. She knew what she meant, she just hadn’t thought it through yet.

“No, I mean about you possibly being bisexual.”

Abigail tried to imagine how it would go if she did come out to her parents. Every scenario was more disastrous than the last. She couldn’t imagine a world where they would even tolerate it, let alone accept it. Raelle and Tally were so lucky to have such supportive parents. She couldn’t imagine how that felt. Pulling the covers up over her head, she let out a loud sigh and wiped her eyes.

“I don’t know.”

They both assured her that these things took time and that they would support her no matter what she decided. But Abigail was certain they expected her to tell her parents eventually. She knew that if she ever wanted to be in a real relationship with a girl, she would have to come out. It wasn’t fair to expect her partner to stay in the closet with her. 

It was hard to imagine ever being ready for that.

  
  



	7. Short-Circuit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raelle & Scylla go on a date.

_May 2020_

The day had finally come. That magical day, that felt once in a lifetime, like the planets were aligning. Somehow, both she and Scylla were off at the same time! That meant they could finally hang out, after talking about it for the past week and a half. While Raelle was excited, she was far more nervous than anything else. It was one thing joking around while they were working together, but it would be something else entirely to be alone with her. Just the thought of it made her brain go haywire.

They had both agreed to sleep in given how rare that was for them and were planning on meeting up whenever they woke up. When Rae finally rolled out of bed, she already had a text from Scylla letting her know she was awake. The two of them discussed their options and agreed to go out for coffee and brunch. A real meal sounded heavenly since she was mostly subsisting on vending machine snacks and ramen noodles. Her stomach growled predictably at the thought.

After agreeing on a time, she hopped in the shower to wash last night’s shift off of her still aching body and chose a nice outfit, realizing this would be the second time Scylla saw her out of her scrubs. The first had been their unexpected encounter at the hospital with Tally and she still smiled thinking about sitting under the tree with her that night.

Raelle had already ordered an orange juice & coffee and was sitting at a back table, tying up the straw wrapper into knots when Scylla arrived. She immediately dropped the wrapper and smiled, not sure if she should stand up to greet her or not. She decided against it as the fellow doctor sat down and ordered a coffee of her own, indicating she’d need a few minutes to peruse the menu. Scylla glanced at her across the table with a knowing smile and Raelle thought she was going to pass out. There was no way that Scylla wasn’t aware of her effect on her because she could feel her face flushing every time she so much as looked in her direction.

“What are you getting?” The brunette asked curiously as she flipped through the menu.

Raelle opened her menu again to the breakfast section. “The Big Breakfast. A little bit of everything. Just don’t judge me for eating like a pig on our first date.”

Scylla laughed, the sound sweet and musical and Rae could feel the blush crawling up to her ears. “You are so cute. Like I haven’t seen you scarf a bag of chips in between patients. I think I can handle it. Besides, I don’t exactly eat like a bird myself,” she winked. 

The waiter brought her coffee and she thanked him before they placed their breakfast orders and returned their menus. Scylla put her napkin on her lap like a proper lady before she doctored up her coffee with cream and sugar, turning the beverage a pleasant shade of brown. Raelle, however, was drinking her coffee black. The sludge helped her wake up, though she was no stranger to the fancy overly sweet Starbucks drinks that she often purchased from their hospital cafe to perk her up.

“So, how did you sleep? Have any dreams about me?” Scylla teased, blue eyes sparkling with amusement as Raelle coughed loudly, her cheeks as red as a fire engine.

In fact, she had, but she wasn’t going to tell her that. “I don’t remember my dreams,” Raelle mumbled, deftly avoiding her gaze. “What about you?”

“I nearly always remember my dreams, but the one you starred in last night isn’t exactly appropriate table conversation.” Scylla was most definitely doing this on purpose. She was so flirtatious and while Raelle definitely was receptive to that, she was also useless at flirting back. She had no idea what to do or say and was just beyond flustered, which Scylla thankfully seemed to think was cute for some reason. “But maybe I could be persuaded to show you later.”

_Oh._ **Fuck**. Raelle’s brain short-circuited and she merely sat there, trying to remember a single word in her vocabulary after every intelligent thought had flown out of her mind at once.

Scylla winced as she stayed silent in response to her overt flirting. “Sorry, was that too much?”

“No, I-I liked it. It’s just, wow, I don’t...know what to say. You are a _lot._ In a good way. I’m just awkward. Like a walking gay disaster. Hopefully that’s your type,” Raelle laughed at herself.

“Most definitely,” the doctor assured her, reaching forward to brush her fingers against Raelle’s. “I thought I’d made that obvious.”

Whew, boy, the butterflies in her stomach were massive. She chuckled. “You have. Very much. My, heh, my father always says I have a type. Maybe he’s right?”

“And what’s your type?”

Raelle smirked as she tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear, leaning in closer. “Dark hair, trouble...” Maybe she wasn’t all bad at this flirting thing.

“That _does_ sound like me,” Scylla hummed, lifting her head to meet Rae’s gaze. “Can I take a peek at your palm? Not being weird, I promise. I like to do a little palm reading in my spare time.”

She turned her palm over, hoping it wasn’t too clammy as Scylla took it in her hand and traced the lines on her palm with her fingers. It made her shiver. “Spare time? What’s that?” Her voice cracked a bit but if Scylla noticed, she didn’t mention it. She was being very quiet, which made her nervous. “What’s it say? Am I going to be hit by a bus tomorrow?”

Scylla snorted. “It’s not that specific. Hmm. Looks like it says...you’re very gay.” She laughed and squeezed her hand. “Actually, your hands say quite a lot about you. More than you’d guess. Your fingers are long and your palms are, too. That means you have water hands.”

“Water hands?”

“Yes, because your features are long and narrow. Someone with hands like yours ais sensitive, compassionate, imaginative...I’d have to say those things seem accurate. And the different lines each represent different things. This top line is your heart line. See how it begins below your index finger? That says that you will be content in your relationships. Your line is very deep, showing that your relationships are very important to you.” Scylla paused, probably noticing her dubious expression and she laughed out loud. “This isn’t bullshit, I swear!”

Raelle turned her hand around, pressing her palm into Scylla’s without breaking eye contact. She was beginning to feel more bold, so she teased her: “Feels to me like a good excuse to hold my hand.”

_“Busted,”_ she grinned, linking their fingers together like it was the most natural thing in the world. “But what I was reading on your palm wasn’t bullshit. I’m into all that stuff. Palmistry, tarot, runes...it’s all quite interesting.”

That made sense considering her own assumptions, but Raelle thought it only polite to ask, rather than assume, so she did just that. “I remember you saying the word Goddess a few times. I wanted to ask, are you Wiccan? Not that it matters to me, like at all. If anything, I think it’s really cool.”

“Yeah. I am. I’d love to teach you more about it, if you’re interested.” Scylla sounded pleased that she was into it and she couldn’t help but wonder if people had been judgmental about her beliefs.

She nodded, expressing her interest before they were interrupted by the delivery of their food. Reluctantly, she let go of Scylla’s hand and smiled politely at the waiter, taking her plate and eagerly grabbing her fork. She was starving and now that the food was in front of her, couldn’t wait to eat it. Conversation slowed as they stuffed their faces, neither of them wanting to talk with their mouths open. Midway through, Raelle took a break, putting down her half eaten slice of toast with a sigh and draining the rest of her orange juice.

Raelle leaned back in her chair before asking, “Are you into astrology? You didn’t mention it.”

Scylla swallowed a bite of pancake and smiled as she licked the syrup from her lips. “Yeah, of course. I’m a Libra and you’re a...Pisces, right?”

“How did you know that?” She laughed in disbelief, wondering if she was some kind of psychic.

“You had your birthday in February, remember? Nurse Byron brought you cupcakes?”

Raelle shook her head, remarking with a grin, “Wow. You have a really good memory.”

“Creepy, isn’t it?” Scylla teased, nudging her foot beneath the table as she took a bite of bacon.

“Nah, not creepy. Just a _little_ weird.”

She feigned offence, gasping and clutching her chest. “So you think I’m weird?”

“Sexy weird,” Rae clarified, earning a genuine smile from her date. This was going very well. Once she’d gotten over being initially flustered, conversation flowed easily between them and she was enjoying her company a great deal. The food was great, too, and once she was fully stuffed, they argued over who would pay the bill. Ultimately they were both too stubborn to give in, so they went Dutch and each paid for their own. Maybe next time.

Scylla walked her out to the car, lingering there as she made it obvious she wasn’t ready for the date to come to an end. Luckily for her, neither was Raelle. When she invited her over to her place, Rae said yes so quickly that it made the brunette laugh again. It was a sweet sound and she hoped she could earn just a few more laughs before the day was through. She agreed to follow her car to her apartment, slipping out and coming along with her inside and to the elevator.

“So, do you want to watch something?” She suggested as they entered her apartment, Scylla stopping to hang her coat on the rack before she turned around to look at Raelle.

She shrugged, kicking off her shoes. “Sure, I guess.”

“I could turn on some music and we could just...talk,” Scylla was leaving it all up to her and all she could think was they were alone together in her apartment and things might start happening. Raelle didn’t care what they did, she was just grateful to be here.

Not wanting to be too disagreeable, she murmured, “That sounds nice.”

With a smile, Scylla led her into the living room and turned on her Bluetooth speaker, pulling her phone out of her bag and turning on some music. She lay her phone face down on the table next to the speaker and sat down on the couch next to Raelle, turning toward her.

“So,” Scylla casually draped her arm across the top of the couch. “Have you thought about what you want your specialty to be?” She was talking about

It was painful to recall the way her accident had shaped her dreams. “I wanted to be a trauma surgeon. Dreamed about it. But when I lost my hand...I thought it wasn’t possible. I’d still love to do that, but I don’t know if I’d be allowed or not. I’m thinking maybe peds. I do love kids. They’re better than adults, like, nine times out of ten.”

“I’ve never heard of a trauma surgeon with a prosthetic, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be the first. I’m thinking neuro, for me. I’m just so fascinated by the brain and how it works. I haven’t gotten to scrub in on any brain surgeries yet though. I’ve been dying to. The only time I’ve ever seen a brain was in the cadaver lab,” she laughed. “Which was very cool, by the way, I nearly decided to become a medical examiner after that.” Pausing, her blue eyes fell onto Raelle’s. “Can I hold your hand?” Raelle started to reach out her right hand and Scylla shook her head. “No. The other one.”

It was a bold request but it wasn’t something Raelle was sensitive about. She’d had curious people ask her about it ever since the accident and most of them were rude. At least Scylla was kind in her request. She scooted closer to allow Scylla to look more closely at her prosthetic hand, marveling at the design under her breath.

After a few moments, she lifted her head to meet Raelle’s gaze. “Who made this? I’ve never seen anything like this before.” As her fingers brushed against her prosthetic, she could swear that she nearly felt it. Her breath caught in her throat as blue eyes met her own.

“Uh, Tally did, actually,” she answered after a moment.

“Really? Color me impressed. Are all of your friends so...talented?” Scylla had let go of her hand, her fingers trailing down the buttons on Raelle’s shirt. Having her this close was making her heart race.

_Words, Collar. Use your words,_ she thought as she blanked out again. “Pretty much,” Raelle blurted out, not that it wasn’t true, but she was having trouble functioning at the moment. Her heart felt as if it was going haywire, her breath was quick, her head fuzzy and butterflies were swarming in her stomach. It was a nice feeling, but it also made her feel kind of sick. “Oh, god,” she muttered under her breath, causing Scylla’s brow to furrow as she pulled away.

“Sorry, what — _are you okay?_ ”

“Honestly, I don’t know,” Raelle laughed, wishing she could slap herself. “It’s been a while. I don’t know what I’m doing. I feel like I’m making an idiot out of myself, but uh, I really like you a lot. I don’t wanna mess it up…”

Scylla looked like she wanted to comfort her, but was scared to get too close after she’d moved away. Raelle didn’t blame her for that, appreciating that she respected her boundaries, but also feeling incredibly guilty for her reaction. She was just feeling overwhelmed and it wasn’t entirely bad, either. “I like you, too. If this is too much, I can...you know...back off.”

“No. I don’t want you to do that,” she promised, taking a breath and scooting closer. “I really want to kiss you.” The confession had her cheeks reddening and the gorgeous brown haired doctor gave her a smile that made the butterflies in her stomach go wild.

“So why don’t you?”

That was exactly the encouragement Raelle needed. She grinned and leaned in, hesitating at first, but Scylla didn’t close the distance between them. She patiently waited as Rae paused, then finally brought their lips tentatively together. Her hand naturally moved to her chin, cupping it as she kissed her more firmly, loving the way her lips felt against her own. What started as a chaste kiss quickly intensified, leaving the blonde pulling away breathlessly. It was everything she’d been dreaming about for the past year or so since her crush had developed. She couldn’t imagine a better kiss.

“You’re really good at that,” Scylla whispered, trailing her finger along the scar on Raelle’s jaw, another reminder of her accident. “Like, even better than I thought you’d be. See what happens when you get out of your head, hmm?” She teased, grinning at her affectionately.

She couldn’t help but smile at that. “Very good things, apparently.”


	8. Plunge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tally's date with Gerit doesn't go as anticipated.

_ May 2020 _

Tally was not sure how much more she could take of this. The temptation was just too great. She was still in a lot of pain and she was trying to be strong, but that wasn’t her strong suit. How ironic. 

She hated the crutches. Absolutely  _ loathed _ them. She would’ve much rather crawled across the floor than use them. They made her underarms sore and she was still very wobbly on them, frankly surprised she hadn’t fallen yet. The temptation to just walk on her ankle was ever present, but she knew her friends would never let her hear the end of it if she ended up re-injuring it. That and that alone was what gave her the inspiration to keep going. But it sucked and six weeks couldn’t come soon enough.

She could count the number of times she’d been out of her house in the past two weeks. Tally felt like she was losing touch with reality, or at the very least, with time. It was difficult to keep track of what day it was because they all bled into each other. She couldn’t take it anymore. She tried in vain to call Raelle. She should’ve known better, because she was busy more often than she wasn’t. Because of the time of day, she knew Abigail was still at work, too, and she wouldn’t dare interrupt her there. 

That left her with few options. She had colleagues, which were basically just employees who had to take her call, and she had acquaintances, none of whom she felt comfortable enough randomly calling in the middle of the day. There was one person she could think of, who worked nights and would be available. She had committed to moving on. Maybe she needed to take the next step. So, she called him.

“Oh, wow, hey, Tally,” Gerit sounded legitimately so excited to hear from her that it made her smile. She hadn’t smiled like that in a while. “How are you doing?”

He asked, so she told him, complaining and complaining so much that he really should’ve been annoyed by it, but instead he listened, remaining enthusiastic despite how much of a downer she was. After she was finished with her complaints, Gerit asked her if she wanted to go out for a drink. “...but it’s the middle of the afternoon,” she said dubiously.

“Time is fake. Who cares? Come have a drink with me. You sound bored and I make pretty decent company. We can share a basket of chicken wings.” He told her this without any knowledge of how much she loved to eat and for that, she adored him.

“I do love chicken wings.”

It didn’t take much convincing because she truly was sick of being cooped up and had already exhausted most of her delivery options. Chicken wings sounded even better than hanging out with a cute boy, as far as she was concerned. And a drink. She could really use one and she hadn’t taken any of her meds today, so she was good to go.

After hobbling into her bedroom, she carefully changed out of her pajamas and into a nice spring dress. Tally hoped no one at the bar stared at her for being on crutches. She still felt insecure about it, as she hadn't really been around other people much since her accident. Getting into her car without putting any weight on her ankle proved difficult but once she was in, she threw them into the passenger seat and made the drive to the Pigskin Pub where Gerit had asked her to meet him. She’d never been there before, but it looked like a small place, perfect for an intimate date. 

Tally immediately spotted him sitting at the bar and he waved her over. She tried to ignore the looks as she crossed the floor, taking the stool next to Gerit and leaning the crutches against the bar. “Hi,” she greeted breathlessly, still not used to the effort it was taking her to walk now.

“Hey. You look beautiful,” he complimented with a genuine smile. 

“Thanks. So do you,” she teased, ordering a strawberry daiquiri before Gerit ordered another beer and their chicken wings, mild since Tally couldn’t handle spicy food.

Gerit couldn’t take his eyes off of her and it made her feel really special. She hadn’t felt this wanted in a long time, and it felt healthy to focus on someone who returned her feelings. Right now this was just a physical attraction and maybe a slight crush, but she could see it turning into more if she let it. He asked her what she’d been up to and she didn’t have much to say, since she’d been taking vacation time and hanging out at her house alone all this time. When she asked about what he’d been doing, it was mostly work, playing video games and hanging out with his buddies.

Conversation flowed pretty easily between the two of them as she sipped on her daiquiri, realizing she hadn’t had one in a long time. She only planned on having the one because she was a lightweight and figured the chicken wings would counteract them. Gerit was impressed with the number of wings she was able to eat, and quite honestly, she could’ve eaten his, too. But he didn’t need to know that. As the cherry in her drink sank to the bottom of the slush, she picked it up and popped it into her mouth. Gerit stared at her as she ate it, like he was waiting for her to tie the cherry stem with her tongue.

“I don’t know how to do that,” she laughed.

Gerit shrugged his shoulders. “I actually do. Hey, barkeep!” He said it kind of obnoxiously, which made the bartender ignore him for a bit longer than he usually would. “Can I have a cherry, please?” He rolled his eyes but handed him one anyway. “Observe.”

The cherry went into his mouth and a matter of seconds later, he stuck out his tongue to reveal a tied cherry stem. It was legitimately impressive. “How do you know how to do that?!” She cried out in disbelief, taking it in her fingers and inspecting it, as if it were some kind of magic trick.

“I had braces as a kid. Got really good at getting stuff out of my teeth with my tongue. It’s pretty much a useless talent, but it makes for a good party trick,” he shrugged. “Do you have any unusual talents?”

Tally laughed, leaning against the bar as she considered the question. “Well, I do invent and design medical devices for a living. I know how to code, and I built a robot for my best friend last year. Oh, yeah, and I can fit my whole fist in my mouth.”

“Whaaaaaaat?” Gerit was shocked and immediately started to laugh in disbelief. “How do you even discover that you can do that?”

“Hmm,” she tried to recall the first time she’d ever done it, “I think Abigail dared me to.”

He nodded as he finished up his beer and stopped to order another. He offered to get her another drink, but Tally declined and asked for a cup of water instead. Gerit shifted uncomfortably on his bar stool, crossing his legs as he turned toward her. He looked like he was struggling with something. “Your friend, she’s really intense. I don’t think she likes me very much.”

“She doesn’t really like anyone,” Tally shrugged her shoulders. “We’ve known her since we were kids. She’s difficult to get to know. But she’s worth it, once she finally lets you in...she has the biggest heart. Abigail is a beautiful person. If she was rude to you, it’s probably just her being overprotective.”

“Oh, okay, like my big sister,” a look of recognition crossed his face. “She’s like that sometimes with the girls I date. It definitely comes from a place of love.”

He had pretty much compared Abigail to her sisters, which was entirely inaccurate. There was nothing sisterly to her feelings for Abigail and it was laughable to even consider that. At times, she felt like Raelle could’ve been her sister, but she’d never felt that way with Abigail, not as long as they’d been friends. There was always something different to their relationship but it had taken an embarrassingly long time for Tally to recognize what it was.

She shrugged her shoulders, unable to ignore the gnawing sensation in her stomach. “I don’t know. I guess? I don’t think of her like a sister, but maybe she does…”

He frowned, not understanding where she was going with it. “What do you mean?”

“Nothing, I- I’m being weird. Sorry. There’s some stuff going on between us right now.” More like for their entire friendship, but she wasn’t going to go into that. This was supposed to be a date with Gerit, not a venting session.

Gerit carefully wiped his fingers, furrowing his brow as he noticed Tally’s hesitance to talk about Abigail. “I don’t think you’re being weird and you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, but I’m a pretty decent listener. Are you guys fighting?”

“We have been, yeah. But...it’s kinda complicated.”

“Complicated how?” Gerit paused before adding, “You don’t have to answer that.”

But she found that she wanted to. She had never told a single person the truth about this but he was being very sweet, so she just let it flow, regardless of what that meant for her chances with him. 

“I’ve pretty much had a crush on Abigail for my entire life,” she admitted with a mirthful chuckle because she knew how pathetic she must have sounded. “Ever since we were kids, I just thought she was the coolest and I was always doing things to impress her. Making an idiot out of myself…”

“Sticking your whole fist in your mouth…” He teased.

Tally laughed at that, pleased to see he was taking it pretty well. “Yeah, stuff like that. I couldn’t tell you specifically when it changed from a crush to...this. But it’s been a long time. I’ve never told anybody this before. So, please, don’t say anything.”

Gerit placed his hand on hers and gave it a squeeze before letting go. “Who am I gonna tell? Don’t worry. Your secret’s safe with me. You’re...in love with her, aren’t you?” He sounded a bit pained when he said that, probably because he had a thing for her. She couldn’t blame him for being sad about it.

“Yeah. I am,” she admitted with a nod and a sad smile. “It doesn’t matter, though. She doesn’t feel the same way about me.”

He posed an interesting question, one she had already asked herself literally dozens of times. “How do you know, if you haven’t told her? Is she straight?”

“No, she’s bisexual, but she’s not exactly shy, Gerit. If she wanted to kiss me, she would have already. I don’t think she sees me that way.” She always came to the same conclusion. She believed that Abigail would’ve simply told her how she felt.

He was thoughtful in his response, which she appreciated, but it also made her even more confused. Gerit recalled his own experiences as he commented carefully, “Or, to play devil’s advocate here, she might be sitting...wherever she is right now, thinking the very same thing about you. It’s hard to be brave when you have feelings for your best friend. I know. I’ve been there. My best friend growing up was a girl. Talia.” There was a recognizable look of sadness in his eyes as he said her name wistfully.

“Yeah? How’d that turn out for you?”

  
Gerit immediately defended himself, “Not well, but that doesn’t mean that…”

“Heh. Sure. Maybe this is messed up, but I’d rather things be like this than to lose her completely, which I very well could if I told her I was in love with her. I mean, hypothetically, if Raelle came to me and told me she was in love with me, I would be pretty freaked out by it.”

“Would you cut her out of your life forever?” Damn it. He was making too much sense.

Tally frowned, crossing her arms to her chest. “Well, no, of course not. She’s my best friend.”

“Okay, so do you see what I mean?” He chuckled, taking a deep drink of his beer before wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “I don’t know why I’m over here trying to convince you to tell her how you feel when it really benefits me for you not to.”

She couldn’t help but nod because his scenario did make sense.“I’ll think about it. Thanks, Gerit. You’re really sweet. It says a lot about you that I feel comfortable enough opening up about this.”

“Anytime. Are you still hungry? Maybe we could go for ice cream.”

“There’s always room for ice cream,” she grinned.

Gerit went to settle their bill, ignoring her desire to pay for her own stuff. She didn’t know what his money situation was and she didn’t want to make assumptions, so she figured he knew his limits well enough and wouldn’t make the offer if he couldn’t cover it. But it was hard. Tally really had to hold herself back as he paid the bill and she took upon herself to leave a hefty tip for the bartender.

Together they walked down the street to the old-timey ice cream parlor. Tally ordered mint chocolate chip in a chocolate cone, which tasted really great as they sat down at one of the small tables outside. She was having a nice time with Gerit and found that she felt much more relaxed after their honest conversation. He still wanted to hang out with her after she confessed to being in love with her friend, so that was another point in the pro column. 

She was seriously considering his suggestion to let Abigail know how she felt, because his hypothetical scenario had shown her a different perspective. She knew that Abigail wasn’t a bad friend or a bad person. Even if she didn’t feel the same way, it was hard to imagine her truly cutting Tally out of her life forever. It might be awkward for a while, but she could deal with that.

Maybe it was time to take the plunge.

If she didn’t talk herself out of it first.


	9. Forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abigail's been drinking and Tally shows up at her door unannounced.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a little on the short side, but the next one will make up for it :)

_May 2020_

It had been a long, very bad day at Bellweather Corp. and Abigail was exhausted, not to mention in need of a drink. The moment she entered her apartment, she kicked off her pumps and stomped across the floor to grab a bottle of wine, unceremoniously popping the cork before she poured a hearty glass. She washed some pain relievers down with a sip and headed to her bedroom, placing the glass at the edge of her dresser while she got out of her dress.

Today had been the monthly board meeting and it had gone okay until someone mentioned seeing Abigail’s photo plastered in the society pages with Sunrise Solutions’ CEO Tally Craven. Her parents knew that she was still friends with Tally, but didn’t appreciate her being seen so publicly with “the competition.” They didn’t even wait for the meeting to end before berating her. It made her feel like a child and it undermined her authority as CEO, leaving her angry and defensive. She had one of her outbursts in front of everyone and she couldn’t have been more mortified. When she’d gone to her office to collect herself, her mother pulled her aside to suggest she ‘take a few days.’ 

She had no intention of taking a few days, not after all that had happened. It would look as if she was running with her tail between her legs and Abigail was not one to back down from her fight, not even from her parents, not anymore. Now in a silken nightgown, she slipped underneath the covers, flipped on her Netflix and continued to drain her glass of wine. One glass led to several and she was feeling pretty sleepy when she thought she heard a knock at the door. She had convinced herself it was her imagination just before hearing another, more insistent knock. With a sigh she climbed out of bed, grabbing a robe on the way out of her bedroom, figuring that since she didn’t know who was at her door, it was best to be clothed.

After a look in the peephole to ensure it wasn’t her mother at her door, Abigail let Tally into her apartment, noticing that she seemed a bit on edge. She offered her friend a glass of wine, which she gratefully agreed to and poured them both a glass, taking a seat with her in the living room. She’d already had too much to drink and she was sure Tally could smell the alcohol on her breath, let alone notice some of her usual drunken giveaway behaviors. 

“I’m happy to see you, but is everything okay?” Abi asked curiously once they got settled, crossing and uncrossing her legs without taking her eyes off of the redhead. She was nervous, too, because the two of them were rarely alone together and her inhibitions were nicely loosened thanks to being buzzed. She hoped she didn’t do or say something she couldn’t take back.

Abigail hated it when people blamed their behavior on alcohol because she believed they were using it as an excuse for their own lack of self control. She guessed she would put her beliefs to the test tonight. She had a strong sense of self control under normal circumstances, else she would’ve kissed Tally a long time ago. She had certainly thought about it enough.

Tally dodged the question, first by questioning, “How much wine have you had tonight?”

“Most of the bottle. It was _not_ a good day,” she had no shame as she admitted the truth, though she probably would’ve come off as an alcoholic to someone who didn’t know better. Abigail didn’t usually do this because she knew she was a messy drunk. She had a scar on her chin to remind her of that.

It came as no surprise that Tally immediately let go whatever she’d come here for to comfort her. She put down her glass of wine and scooted unbearably closer, the scent of her perfume intoxicating. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“No. But that probably means I should. It’s funny, you showing up here, like you knew I needed you. Sometimes I think you might be psychic, Tal,” she sighed and leaned her head on Tally’s shoulder, taking a deep breath to calm herself down because her heart was already nearly beating out of her chest. Abigail could only hope that Tally didn’t notice, knowing it would be difficult to explain. “We had our monthly board meeting today. This guy, Todd, he’s one of the board members. Total tool. He decided to announce, in the middle of the meeting, that he’d seen pictures of us in the newspaper together. I got a wonderful lecture about cozying up to the competition and my parents...well, let’s just say they were in rare fucking form.” She was getting angry just recalling it, clenching her fist tightly.

Tally reached over, put her hand on top of Abigail’s fist and slowly began to help her relax her hand, pulling each finger back into position one at a time. As she did this, she didn’t break eye contact, breathing slow and deep, which Abigail naturally emulated. She knew that Tally struggled with anxiety and had for their entire lives, and many of her tricks also seemed to work well for Abigail’s temper.

“Hey. It’s okay. You’re okay.”

She lifted her head, furrowing her brows as she looked at Tally. “I don’t know what to do. They’re not going to stop. It’s not just this, it’s every little thing I do. None of the decisions are mine. If I’d known they were installing me as CEO to be their puppet, I never would’ve said yes. There are so many better things I could be doing with my life than making profits for their company.”

The money was great, she wasn’t going to complain about that, but Tally was right and had been right this entire time. She kept making excuses and they weren’t even treating her well, so she didn’t know why she bothered to protect them. This was the last straw, the way her mother had insinuated that she should end her friendship with Tally, as if she wasn’t the sole reason she was still here.

“What do you want to be doing?” Tally whispered, leaving her speechless because no one had ever asked her that, not once.

She considered it because she had several ideas, some more developed than others, but there was one that she was most passionate about, so she went with that one. “I guess if I could do anything, if this is a dream world where anything is possible…I’d like to start my own hospital.”

“Wow, really? That would be amazing, Abigail.” Tally sounded genuinely impressed.

It would be amazing, if she could even pull it off. “I wouldn’t even know where to start.”

“I think I have some connections that might be able to help. If you’re interested, I mean. I could reach out to them on your behalf.”

Abigail wasn’t going to say no to her friend’s generous offer. She was on thin fucking ice at Bellweather Corp and it would be nice to have an escape plan, just in case. She had plenty of money in the bank to support herself, not to mention contribute toward the project. It was a dream she’d had for a long time but expected it would never come to fruition. She had already made peace with the fact that she’d probably die working for her parents’ company. It never felt like an actual option but now, with Tally’s support and guidance, it was starting to seem tangible.

Because of her rough day and probably because of the wine she’d had, Abigail was feeling sentimental. Tally hadn’t said anything about why she was here and made no indication that there was something she wanted to tell her, so she felt free enough to ask her if she’d lay down with her. It was a selfish request, but right now all she wanted was for Tally to hold her. She knew before she even asked that her friend would say yes. She helped her with her crutches, leading her into her bedroom. She’d been in Abigail’s room many times before, so this didn’t feel inherently different, but with the alcohol in her system it made her breath heavier than usual.

She carefully snuggled into Tally’s arms, nuzzling lovingly against her neck. She was always so warm and comforting and Abigail had never let her guard down more than when she was with her like this. They didn’t have to say anything at all because they didn’t have to. She let out a soft sigh as Tally started running her fingers through her hair like she always did, her fingers gently scratching at her scalp. It felt amazing and she lifted her head, meeting the redhead’s gaze intently as her other hand moved to cup her cheek. The only thing stopping her from kissing Tally right now was herself. 

She was absolutely, utterly terrified and not much frightened Abigail Bellweather. These feelings threatened everything and this was one of those things, that once it happened, couldn’t be taken back. She always weighed the risks and rewards of every decision she made. She never took a single decision lightly and while there were many potential pros to kissing Tally, there were also a lot of cons. Logically, she’d tried to tell herself that they were both single, and they’d been drinking. If she reacted poorly she had a good excuse. Blame it on the alcohol.

Except even that wasn’t enough. She hated that she was scared, hated second guessing herself, but she also told herself that if she ever did get the nerve to kiss her, it needed to be special. If by some chance Tally returned her feelings, she would hate to waste their first kiss on a drunken makeout. She meant so much more to her than that. But damn, was it hard. Her lips were right there and Abigail was desperate to feel them against her own.

Her stomach turned and she immediately shifted, pulling away from Tally as she heaved. “Oh, shit,” she muttered under her breath, practically tripping on her way to the bathroom. Today hadn’t been her lucky day but she did make it to the toilet in time. For that, she was grateful. Throwing up in front of Tally wouldn’t be anything new, but she’d already ruined the moment enough as it was. She had her head buried in the toilet when Tally hobbled her way over and sat down on the tile, pulling her hair back and gently stroking it.

“You overdid it, huh?” She whispered, not judging, but genuinely concerned.

Abigail lifted her head, grabbed some toilet paper and wiped her mouth. “Yeah. Guess so. Sorry, Tal. I hate that you’re seeing me like this.”

“Don’t mention it, babe. It happens. I got you. But I didn’t think it through. When you’re done, I’m gonna need you to help me up,” she laughed, rubbing her friend’s back in a circular motion.

She was pretty sure that she was finished and she didn’t dare look in the toilet bowl before flushing. Abigail carefully helped Tally up, repositioning the crutches for her. They really did seem like a pain in the ass. She felt bad that she had to keep this up for another month. She grabbed one of the tiny cups she kept in the bathroom for her mouthwash and filled it with water, rinsing the taste out of her mouth. Yeah, she definitely wouldn’t be kissing Tally now, even if her concerned face was precious.

“I’m really glad you came over. It’s good to see you. But was there a reason you stopped by, or did you just miss my beautiful face?” She teased as they went back into the living room, which felt more like neutral territory than her bedroom and she now felt sober enough to sit up on her own.

Tally chuckled, burying her incisor into her lower lip, something she typically did when she was feeling anxious. Abigail couldn’t help but glance down at her nails, which were bitten down to the nubs. There was something weighing on Tally, and had been for a while. Since the night of the gala, she had been off, and she had no idea what it could be. Abigail never wanted to push someone to talk about something they weren’t ready for, but it bothered her to think she was going through something alone.

“Oh, it’s not a big deal. I went out with Gerit today and realized we’re better off as friends.”

Abigail wasn’t so sure she was telling the truth. “You came here to tell me that? You could’ve texted.”

“Well, maybe I missed your beautiful face, too,” Tally laughed, nudging her playfully. “I don’t need an excuse to see you, right? I’ve just been so relieved ever since we talked the other day. I was worried you were mad at me about something.”

“Mad at you? How could I ever be mad at you?” She shook her head in disbelief, because she couldn’t remember ever being angry with Tally, not even once. “The hospital thing, it was...I was in a bad mood, alright?” She couldn’t say that she was jealous, but her bad mood captured it well enough. “Raelle poked the bear. You _don’t_ poke the bear. I needed time to chill. And for the record, I tried to reach out to you that night and you ignored me. So it’s not just _my_ fault, Bubbles.”

The redhead huffed because she knew she was right, her brown eyes wide and feigning innocence, but only for a moment before she slipped, sucking her pouty lip back in. “No, I know. You’re right. I guess I was trying to punish you for leaving...which was pretty immature.”

“It’s okay. We _are_ good now, right? Because I already signed us up for the convention in June and booked a hotel. Maybe that was premature, but I didn’t want us to lose our spots. It’s only a few weeks from now.” Abigail hoped she hadn’t crossed a line by making an assumption but they had already discussed it so it seemed like a natural next step.

Luckily Tally seemed to be pleased and looking forward to it just as much as she was. Abigail didn’t care about the convention itself, because sometimes they could be a bit boring, but with Tally by her side she knew she’d have a good time. Maybe this trip could help repair the damage to their relationship. Though they had certainly reconciled after their most recent argument, there was still some animosity there underneath it all. Abigail wanted that gone, but she was pretty sure the only way to do that would be to leave Bellweather Corp, which she was now highly considering doing. 

Telling her parents about her plans was going to be nerve-wracking. They had always been overbearing and intense, and Abigail was frightened of them. She never liked to show it, but she was desperate for their love and attention. Her brother Apollo was like their favorite child and always had been. He was the oldest and never let her forget how much better he was than her. She had been competing and losing to him for her entire life. It had been Apollo who had been given the CEO position at the main pharmaceutical division and she had been relegated to the less important, less lucrative division of medical devices. She tried not to be bitter but their preference for him was so abundantly clear that it was difficult not to let it bother her.

She knew that when she made her intentions clear, her parents could very well disown her. That very possibility was the whole reason Abigail had never come out to them, but if they were going to disown her anyway, maybe she could kill two birds with one stone. The mere thought had her heart racing. As she got lost in her thoughts, Tally brought her back to reality, brows furrowed deeply as she looked at her. She knew something was going on. She was just that perceptive and without even hesitating, she asked Abigail about it.

“I was just thinking about telling my parents I want to leave. They’re going to freak the hell out, probably cut me off, but I have what I need to take care of myself. I don’t need their help anymore. Let them lick Apollo’s ass, I’m done being second best.” She rolled her eyes, arms crossed and pressed tightly against her chest. “But you know, if they’re going to disown me anyway, I might as well bite the bullet and tell them that I’m bi. It’d be a weight off my shoulders. I am so sick of carrying that around, Tal. I haven’t been able to have a real relationship with a woman because of it.”

Tally’s eyes were on her and she could tell that she was proud. This was something Abigail had been wrestling with since college. That was almost ten years of being closeted, if she didn’t count all the time before her big realization where she’d had confusing feelings and attractions she didn’t understand.

“If you want to tell them, I say do it. You deserve to be happy, Abi, and live your life proud. You’re such a beautiful person, inside and out.”

Had she not just vomited in front of Tally mere minutes ago, she might’ve kissed her right then. She was probably just being kind, but hearing the words come from her mouth affected her a great deal. She nearly cried and instead of bringing her lips to hers, she uncrossed her arms and tackled her in a hug. “I love you so fucking much.” She murmured, voice muffled against Tally as they hugged tightly. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Well, you won’t ever be without me, not if I have anything to say about it. With Rae being a doctor and all of our medical connections, maybe we’ll live forever,” Tally teased, pressing the sweetest kiss to her temple and making her heart ache.

Abigail couldn’t help but let the words slip, hoping that the feelings behind them weren’t too obvious. “I wouldn’t mind living forever, if I got to do it with you.”


	10. Tomorrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When the trio grabs dinner, Raelle notices something going on between Tally & Abigail.

_ June 2020 _

Raelle felt pretty fucking great about herself as she pulled her new motorcycle into the parking lot of her favorite local pizza parlor. She was meeting her friends here tonight and debuting her new ride in the process. She tugged off her helmet, ran her hands through her matted hair and casually slipped her sunglasses into the front pocket of her t-shirt just as Tally started up the ramp on her crutches. She’d been busy lately and hadn’t seen her since the hospital incident, so she’d nearly forgotten about her ankle. She called out to her friend, smirking as the redhead turned around and spotted her.

“No, you did not!” Tally gasped, carefully standing at the edge of the sidewalk. “Wow, Rae. I know you’ve wanted one forever. It’s a good look on you.”

Abigail came around from the other side of the parking lot, giving Raelle a dubious look when she saw the motorcycle. “Having a quarter life crisis or something?” She gave her a light ribbing and approached the bike, giving it a once over. “Finally you have a reason to wear that leather jacket all the time. Have you taken  _ Dr. Ramshorn _ out on it yet?”

The way she said Scylla’s name had Raelle blushing and she was supposed to be looking badass, so it ruined her whole aesthetic. “I just got it today, so no, I haven’t, but I’m not even sure she’s into bikes. I guess we’ll find out.” She tucked her helmet under her arm. “Let’s get inside, I’m fucking starving.”

Abigail and Tally piled into a booth together and Raelle sat across from them, placing her helmet in the empty spot next to her before smiling at the cute waitress who was approaching her table. Her name tag said ‘Glory’ and she very enthusiastically took their order, blushing when Tally spoke to her. Her friend was oblivious to it, of course, but it wasn’t uncommon for people to get flustered around Tally. She had a gorgeous smile and her fiery red hair was beautiful, not to mention her magnetic, light energy that drew everyone in. She was well known in the city for being a philanthropist and activist, and it made sense that their waitress would be crushing on her.

But she also couldn’t help but notice how close Abigail and Tally seemed to be. Clearly they had neglected to inform her that they’d worked out their issues. Raelle, who was never one for being tactful, leaned her elbows on the table and placed her hands on either side of her face.

“So, you guys kissed and made up, huh?”

The statement was just a typical turn of phrase, but both Abigail and Tally seemed to react strangely to it. With her brow furrowing ever so slightly, Abigail adeptly avoided her gaze, turning her head so quickly that Raelle almost feared she’d given herself whiplash. Tally, in typical fashion, had cheeks nearly as red as her hair and was picking at her nails as she opened her mouth to say something then closed it wordlessly. Given their unusual reactions, if Raelle didn’t know better, she’d have though they actually HAD kissed, which now that she thought about it, actually made some kind of sense.

“Wait, did you guys  _ actually  _ kiss?”

Abigail glared at her like she would Force-choke her if only she was able. “What? NO!” Her voice rose an octave and she was so loud that some of the other patrons turned to look at them. 

As the waitress returned with their cokes, Tally practically sank down into the booth, twisting a strand of hair around her finger like she often did when she was nervous. Either they were lying or they simply hadn’t acted on their feelings yet. There was no doubt something was going on. She knew both of them too well and in that moment, she didn’t know what to say. Raelle felt terrible for her outburst, because if they did have feelings for one another, she’d made things incredibly awkward.

“Sorry,” she mumbled with a half hearted shrug. “Things just seem really different between you guys. I didn’t mean to make it weird.”

Raelle ripped off her straw wrapper and began to tie it into knots, looking anywhere but her friend’s faces. She felt like she’d really fucked up and ruined something here, and suddenly it felt like she was infringing on a private moment as her two friends looked at one another. Tally and Abigail being together was something that had never even crossed her mind before. She knew that Tally had always admired Abigail, sometimes nauseatingly so when they were children and Abigail took a lot of pleasure out of ordering her around in those days. They were both strong, independent women now, and their relationship had shifted a great deal since they were kids, but there remained a mutual respect and admiration between them, and there was no erasing their fabled past together.

It was so quiet at their table that Raelle could’ve heard a mouse sneeze. Both Abigail and Tally seemed to be uncomfortable and that, in turn, made her feel even more terrible. She sipped at her coke while casually looking around the restaurant, wishing she could think of something to say to break the tension between the three of them. After a moment, Abigail excused herself to the restroom and she could literally feel her shoulders loosening as she left the table.

“What the hell is going on?!” Rae whispered, almost hissing at her friend across the table.

Tally frowned, two sharp creases visible between her eyes. “Nothing.”

Yeah, right. Raelle didn’t believe that and Tally was a terrible liar. She knew if she pressed her about it, she would break down and tell her, but she did feel a little bad for ambushing her.

“That wasn’t nothing, Tally, spill.” Her voice sounded a bit sharper than she intended and she faltered when she noticed the redhead’s pained expression, adding, “You don’t  _ have _ to tell me, obviously. You don’t owe me anything. I’m just...I’m at a loss here, Tal.”

After a moment, Tally blurted out her confession so quickly she nearly didn’t understand it at all. “I think we had a moment. Last week. I...came to Abigail’s apartment because I was going to tell her that I’m in love with her, but-”

_ “Wait, what?!” _

She nodded emphatically. “Yeah, but she’d had a bad day and she was drunk, so I didn’t say anything. We were laying down together and cuddling, and I’m pretty sure she was going to kiss me, but then she got sick and it kind of ruined the moment. We haven’t really talked since that night.”

“Why didn’t you-”

Raelle didn’t get a chance to ask her question because out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Abigail leaving the restroom and thereby ruining her opportunity to talk to Tally privately. She wouldn’t dare throw her friend under the proverbial bus by bringing it up in front of Abigail, so she pretended like everything was normal. But in those circumstances, that was very difficult to do and she was grateful when their pizza arrived, giving them all something else to focus on.

Abigail wiped her mouth daintily with her napkin, turning to Tally and making Raelle sit up a little straighter with obvious interest. “While I was in the bathroom, I got an email confirming our reservations at the hotel for tomorrow.”

_ HOTEL? _ Raelle mouthed at Tally, who shot her an intense glare.

“The thing is...I think there was some kind of mixup. When I made the reservation, I specifically requested a room with two beds.”

Oh god, Raelle knew where this was going and she was on the edge of her seat. She bit down on her lip, looking from Tally to Abigail with bated breath.

“But uh, according to the email, it looks like our room only has one bed. I can call and complain, but with the convention, they’re probably all booked up, so-”

Tally maintained her composure remarkably well and Raelle was impressed, realizing that maybe her friend was a better actress than she’d ever given her credit for as she declared, “No, it’s okay! You don’t need to do all that. Besides, it’s not like we’ve never shared a bed before, right?”

Raelle could not wipe the smirk off of her face, at least not until Abigail turned to look at her and her smile immediately faded. She quickly nabbed another slice of pizza because if she was eating, she couldn’t say anything. 

“No, you’re right. It’s not that big of a deal. I just wanted to make sure that was okay with you. I can always pull the Bellweather card if need be,” Abigail assured her confidently, with her attention back on Tally instead of Raelle, thank god.

The redhead shook her head, insisting that it wasn’t necessary to make a fuss, that there were worse things in the world than sharing a bed with her best friend. Dear god, Raelle choked on her pepperoni and when her friends turned to look at her she quickly put down the pizza and drained the remainder of coke, her eyes watering.

“Did we save room for dessert?” Glory questioned perkily and to no one’s surprise, Tally had plenty of room for dessert. She ordered a banana split ‘for the table,’ which they all knew was code for Tally eating nearly the entire thing herself.

Raelle caught Abigail staring as Tally licked the chocolate syrup from her lips and she couldn’t help but smile. There was not a single doubt in her mind that these feelings ran both ways. She felt like an idiot for noticing it sooner, but now that she knew the truth, there were so many situations that made a lot more sense. That night at the gala, she’d seen Abigail take Tally’s hand and moments later, she was running off to the bathroom crying. Not to mention that speech she gave, and the way she clammed up when Abigail showed up in the bathroom. That night, Abigail had been a complete bitch to Gerit, but now she recognized that jealousy for what it was. 

There were so many signs and Raelle couldn’t believe that she’d been so oblivious to it all. Scylla’s words rang through her mind, her observation that maybe Abigail had something else going on in her life very astute after all. It sucked that her friends had been struggling with this for god knows how long. If they had trusted her enough to tell her, she could’ve encouraged them to admit their feelings. Tally had said they had a moment that was only ruined by Abigail getting sick, and now they would be sharing a bed, so Raelle didn’t feel like she needed to step in. If something was going to happen between them, it would happen tomorrow. 


	11. Pressure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abigail & Tally attend the convention.

_ The next day _

Tally had insisted to Abigail that she was fine with the bed mishap, but truthfully, she was freaking out. After the moment they’d had last week and the subsequently awkward dinner with Raelle, there was no question that they had feelings for each other. While she was very happy about the possibility of her feelings being reciprocated, there was just so much pressure now to make a move. Abigail was driving and she was in the passenger seat, wringing her hands, biting her nails, braiding and re-braiding her hair, the nervous energy coming off of her in waves. Abigail was her best friend and she knew she was feeling anxious, but she kindly didn’t call any attention to it.

She pulled the car out front, smiling at the valet and getting Tally’s attention. She snapped back to reality, giving the other woman a sheepish grin as she climbed out of the vehicle. The bellhop took their luggage as they walked together toward the front desk, the redhead watching as Abigail assertively provided her name and thanked the desk clerk for the room key. The two of them headed toward the elevator with the bellhop close behind, making her feel more than a bit awkward. By the time they made it to their third floor room, Tally was completely squirming. Abigail slipped the key card into the slot, moving aside for the bellhop to leave their luggage inside and she tipped him generously as she thanked him. She was chewing on her lower lip as she gestured for Tally to enter, seeming just as nervous as she was. 

It was early in the day and the convention would be starting soon, so they didn’t have long before they needed to head downstairs. That meant she wasn’t going to initiate anything now, but Tally was highly considering having a frank conversation with Abigail later. 

Right now their undisclosed feelings felt like the elephant in the room.

Abigail carefully began to unpack her things, hanging up her clothing in the closet just so, putting out her toiletries in the bathroom and taking the time to place every single object from her suitcase somewhere in the room. Tally couldn’t help but chuckle about how different they were, because she normally lived from her suitcase, not bothering to unpack. She decided to hang up her clothes though, just so she didn’t look like a schlub tomorrow next to Abigail.

“Whew,” the brunette remarked as she sat down at the edge of the bed. “So this is the bed we’re sharing tonight. You still feel okay with that? Because I could sleep on the couch,” she gestured to the small, uncomfortable looking couch. It was literally the saddest looking sofa she’d ever seen.

Tally rolled her eyes. As if she would relegate Abigail to the couch. She slowly approached the edge of the bed, taking a seat next to Abi. “I’m more than okay with that. Just a little nervous.”

“Me, too.”

“Abigail Bellweather? Nervous? That’s a new one.” Tally whispered, reaching over to take the other woman’s hand in hers. For her, this was a bold move, because it was the first time she’d touched her since all that had happened. It felt different this time as Abigail slipped her fingers between hers, the two of them evenly meeting one another’s gaze.

She chuckled, rubbing her thumb along the top of Tally’s hand. “No, it isn’t. I’m just usually better at hiding it,” she confessed, taking a shaky breath. “About the other night, Tal, I...I’m really sorry. I’m so embarrassed about what happened. I don’t normally drink that much and I was just upset after everything that my parents did…”

“No, I know. You don’t need to apologize for that.”

What Abigail said next shook her to the core. “I wanted to kiss you. I’ve wanted to for a long time. I just didn’t want to do it when I was all fucked up.” While Tally had suspected as much from the moment they’d had, hearing her say it out loud was different, as was hearing that she’d wanted to kiss her for longer than just since last week.

“I want that, too,” Tally whispered reverently, blinking back tears. This didn’t feel real, because she’d fantasized it too many times, and everything she wanted to say felt rehearsed. “Abi, I…” She tightened her hold on her hand, closed her eyes and took a deep breath because her entire body was beginning to tremble. She was anxious and excited, but the pressure building up to this moment was too much.

Abigail slid her other arm around Tally and leaned into her. “Hey, it’s okay. We don’t have to do it now. We have all weekend, that is, if you don’t end up changing your mind after spending this much time with me.” She was pretty sure that she was kidding, but there was an undertone of insecurity in her words, an insecurity Tally didn’t often see.

“I’m sorry. It’s a lot of pressure. You’d think I’d be ready after waiting this long,” she laughed, looking for solace in Abigail’s deep brown eyes and in them, finding strength. “I want to tell you something.” The other woman didn’t say anything, just nodded, giving her the time she needed to gather herself. She’d said these words to her probably hundreds of times over the years, but this time was different. There was a different connotation and she wanted to make sure there was no room for misunderstanding. “Abigail,” she said her name so seriously that it nearly made her laugh. “I’m in love with you. Like completely, utterly, head over heels in love with you and I have been for...pretty much as long as I can remember.”

She was silent for a long time, so long that Tally’s stomach started to twist and she got a lump in her throat thinking that Abigail was going to tell her she didn’t feel the same way. Despite all that had happened, she continued to expect the worst. The brunette swallowed hard and smiled as she wiped a tear from her eye. Abigail was actually crying. She had only seen her cry a handful of times in her life and she didn’t know what to make of it.

“I’m in love with you, too, Tal,” her voice quivered. “It took me too long to realize it and I was scared, it was never the right time, I was always making excuses. I’m sorry for wasting so much time.”

To hear the words come from Abigail's lips changed everything for her. It felt surreal and she couldn't quite fathom what that meant for them right now.

Tally shook her head, letting go of Abigail’s hand in favor of wrapping her arms around her. “Things happen when they’re meant to happen, Blossom,” she teased gently, using her childhood nickname to lighten the mood a little. “Why don’t we go downstairs, show off our gorgeous dresses and grab some free swag? They better have food,” she added, pressing a kiss to Abigail’s cheek before pulling back.

Abigail was gazing at her as if she’d hung the moon. She’d never had anyone look at her like that before and it literally gave her goosebumps. She loved this woman with everything in her and now that she knew the feeling was mutual, Tally had never been happier. It still felt like a dream that she didn’t want to wake up from.

“Are you ever not hungry?” She laughed as she got to her feet and grabbed Tally’s crutches.

Just looking at the crutches made her pissed off. There was no way she would be caught dead using those downstairs in front of everyone. They ruined her perfectly good outfit. “No. And I’m not using those.”

She huffed. “Yeah, you are.”

“Abi, I’ll be fine. It’s been five weeks. Seven days isn’t going to make or break me. I’m not even wearing heels, and I’ve got you looking out for me.” Tally held out her hand expectantly, daring Abigail to refuse to help her up. She sighed and took her hand, helping her to her feet. “Not even a twinge. Told you I’m fine.”

Abigail seemed frustrated but didn’t want to be overbearing. She simply reminded Tally in a gentle tone, “If you hurt yourself, you know that Raelle will never forgive me.”

“If I hurt myself, which I won’t, I will tell Raelle that I didn’t give you a choice.”

She rolled her eyes but grumpily agreed and Tally carefully walked, making sure to go slow but remarkably not feeling any pain yet. She was trying not to put all of her weight on that foot and so far, so good. Abigail kept looking over at her expectantly in case she needed to catch her or something. It made her grin as she pressed the button for the elevator.

The convention was underway and because they both had already set up for representatives from their company to be there in their own booths, neither had to worry about engaging anyone else. Together they made their way through throngs of businesspeople, Abigail’s hand on the small of her back as she guided her through. It was a small touch but it had her entire body tingling. She stopped at the Bellweather Corp table and her eyes widened when she saw her brother Apollo. That must not have been who Abigail was expecting to be representing the company. 

“Hello, Abigail,” he greeted coolly, dark eyes lingering on Tally with his jaw set sharply. “Tally.”

He said her name like a curse and she tried to be polite, but it was difficult when he was being such an asshole. Luckily Abigail took him to task so she didn’t have to. “What are you doing here? Vanessa was supposed to be here today.”

“Oh, sorry, sis. Vanessa couldn’t make it. Death in the family. Our parents sent me instead. They had no idea you were going to be here. Did you forget to tell them? Don’t tell me you’re here with her,” he gestured at Tally, making her blood boil. “You know how our parents feel about you fraternizing with the enemy.” 

Abigail grabbed her hand tightly, taking a breath as she tried to calm herself down. She was about to go Full Abigail on him. Tally almost pitied him, really. “I don’t tell them everything that I do, Apollo, as you know, I’m not up their ass like you are. And Tally is not, nor has she  _ ever _ been, the enemy. She’s been my best friend my entire life and that’s not changing because of our careers. If you guys have a problem with that, you can go fuck yourselves, because I am done trying to fit in with a family who never made me feel anything but unworthy.”

“I’m going to have to tell them about this,” he said, sounding legitimately shaken.

She laughed bitterly at his threat. “Go right ahead. Maybe they’ll reward you and make you dual CEO while you’re at it. Suck at the family teat harder, Apollo, so maybe you can _ feel _ something for once in your goddamn life. You’re pathetic. This is _all_ you know how to do. If you left the company, you wouldn’t even know how to function.”

“Abigail. That’s enough,” Tally said gently, because she was beginning to make a scene.

She nodded in agreement. “You’re right. He’s not worth it. One more thing, though, dear brother. Can you tell our parents one more thing? Get this down. I don’t want you to forget.” She threw up both of her middle fingers, a move that left Tally nearly snickering, torn between her desire to ensure Abigail didn’t make a fool of herself and to cheer her on for standing up to her asshole brother.

Having made her point, she pulled Tally along with her, the both of them trying to ignore the whispers and staring from other attendees. Thankfully she didn’t make enough of a scene to get them kicked out. The two of them continued through the convention, grabbing free tote bags, pens, and all of the other swag that they could carry. They stopped by the Sunrise Solutions table so that Tally could speak with Eleanor, formally introducing Abigail to her for the first time.

Once they’d walked the whole thing, they headed over to the open bar to get a drink, sitting down together and chatting quietly as a tall man in a slick suit sidled up next to them. The businessman ordered a whiskey and started ogling Abigail, his eyes quite obviously on her breasts. She was either oblivious or didn’t care, but Tally was neither. When he leaned in to say hello, Tally could feel a strong flare of anger and jealousy, though it was clear she was the only one at the bar Abigail was interested in. She didn’t hear what he said because he whispered it into Abigail’s ear, but whatever it was, must’ve been over the line. Her friend had fire in her eyes as she looked at him and not the kind of fire he was probably hoping for. Tally immediately grabbed Abigail’s hand and glowered at the man.

“I don’t appreciate you hitting on my girlfriend,” she said sharply. The lie came easily to her in a way that lies never had and the man looked genuinely surprised, then amused.

“Your girlfriend?” He repeated, glancing at Tally with interest. “Well you’re welcome to join us upstairs, too, Red.”

Abigail snorted. “Never gonna happen. Life isn't a porno film, we're in a committed relationship. Just move on. I’m sure one of the more liquored up single ladies would love to go upstairs with you, at least until you pull out your tiny-” He walked off before she could get out the last word, but she said it anyway. “Dick.” She finished her drink and gazed at Tally adoringly, making her heart skip a beat. “Girlfriend?” She whispered, leaning in closer. “Did you mean that? Or were you just…”

“Do you want to be?” Tally had never been this brave or bold, but the words just slipped out and she had to blame the liquid courage, though the drink was totally weak thanks to it being an open bar, so it likely wasn’t the alcohol at all.

Being jealous was nothing new as far as Abigail was concerned, but this was the first time she'd ever reacted this way. Tally was more than a little embarrassed, but Abigail didn't seem to mind. After she posed the question to her, she noticed the genuine smile settle onto Abigail's lips, her eyes glistening.

“Yes.”

The word had never sounded so good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HERE WE GO, GAYS!!!!!!!


	12. Finally

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What you've been waiting for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: This chapter and the next include extended sex scenes.

Now back in their room, Abigail gazed at Tally in disbelief, wondering how she’d gotten lucky enough to call this woman her girlfriend. It had happened so fast and she still couldn’t believe it. These feelings had been there between them for over a decade, but never acted upon by either one of them due to their fears. After the special moment that they’d had at her house the other night, there was an unbelievable tension between them and thanks to that and some comments Raelle made, this miracle had finally come to fruition. They were doing everything backward, declaring their love before they were together, getting together before they’d ever even kissed. They had a lot of catching up to do, but they were in no rush. They had waited long enough and they were content with taking their time tonight, wherever that may lead them.

True happiness had been rare for Abigail, but as she looked at her closest friend, now her girlfriend, and knew that she had genuine feelings for her, she knew that this was real, unadulterated joy. She couldn’t stop smiling and her heart and mind were racing as she thought about all of the things they would now be able to do together. First on the list was their first kiss. Abigail had imagined it more than a few times and was certainly nervous that it wouldn’t live up to her expectations. She had never wanted to kiss her more than in this moment and it was finally going to happen.

Her hands moved to Tally’s hips as she held her gaze, her breath catching when she pulled her closer. She took a moment to appreciate how beautiful she was and her lips were all too tempting, only this time, she had no reason to hold back. Tally trembled against her, so she held on tighter as she slowly brought her lips to hers. There was no hesitating, their mouths coming together steadily with Tally’s fingers slipping into her hair as she returned her kiss. They fit together perfectly, their bodies touching as they continued kissing, losing themselves in each other in a way they never had before. Abigail’s head was swimming as her lips met Tally’s again and again, memorizing the feel of her mouth against hers.

Somehow it was even better than she could have ever imagined. Abigail’s heart swelled in her chest as she backed her girlfriend up against the bed. She moaned softly when Tally’s tongue slipped into her mouth, her knees getting weak from the unexpected contact of her tongue against hers. Tally broke the kiss, licking her lips as she carefully sat down at the edge of the bed and looked up at Abigail breathlessly. 

There was a look in her eyes she’d never seen before and it made Abigail emotional. She had never allowed herself to feel emotions this deeply, always holding back, pushing everything down, because that’s what she’d been taught by her family. Tally had always been the opposite, feeling everything all the time, whether she was crying because she was sad or happy, or laughing when she heard something funny. The only emotion Tally seemed hesitant to show was anger, and inversely, that was the only emotion that Abigail had been unable to suppress. She had always admired Tally’s vulnerability, but in this moment together with her, she was finally allowing herself to be vulnerable, too. It was a beautiful feeling knowing she could let go and be vulnerable with the woman she loved.

“I love you,” Abigail murmured, letting out a small laugh when she realized that she was crying. She quickly wiped her tears away, hoping Tally didn’t tease her too much about it. She didn’t think she would, because she knew how sensitive she was about showing her emotions. “I love you so much, Tally…” She leaned down to kiss her again, easing herself down onto her lap, this kiss still loving but more intense than those they had already shared.

Tally shifted, holding onto her as she scooted backward, positioning herself on her back while Abigail straddled her, not breaking the kiss until she could feel her face growing heated and remembered she needed to breathe. “I love you, Abigail,” her girlfriend whispered reverently, wiping away her own tears, “I can’t believe we’re  _ both _ crying right now. You realize when we tell Raelle about this, we have to leave that part out, right? Because she’ll never let us live it down.” 

It was just like Tally to worry about something like that right now. Abigail knew she wasn’t even worried on her own behalf, but on Abigail’s, because she had worked hard to cultivate her particular brand of stoicism. Her favorite thing about the redhead was her constant desire to put everyone else’s needs before her own and she often had to provide her a gentle reminder to take care of herself, too. Truthfully, she had no intention of going into detail about this experience with their mutual friend. Normally she didn’t mind discussing the intimate details of her sex life, but this was Tally. She wanted this moment to be theirs alone.

“She’ll never know,” she promised as she brought their lips together again fervently, running her thumb along Tally’s jaw. She knew from this point on, she’d never be able to keep her hands off of her. She had too many years of inaction to make up for and Abigail wanted to memorize every inch of her skin. She could feel Tally smiling against her lips and she pulled away to press a kiss to the dimple on the right side of her face, then to the dimple on her left. 

She loved everything about Tally, but if she had to choose a favorite part of her body, it would be those dimples that melted her the most. “I love your dimples,” she confessed, trailing her lips along Tally’s jaw before kissing her neck and earning a soft, unforgettable moan.

_ “Abi,”  _ Tally’s voice was broken, pleading, and Abigail pulled away enough to study her face. She was breathing heavily as she looked up at her, face flushed a pretty shade of pink. “I...I want you,” the shy way she said it lit a fire in Abigail’s stomach that wouldn’t be easy to put out, even if she wanted to. “I’ve dreamed of this for so long, but if you’re not ready for this, I-”

Abigail silenced her worries with a reassuring kiss, her hands cascading down her sides. “I want this, too,” her words were spoken against Tally’s lips, her breath hot against her mouth. 

It was such a relief to embrace her feelings and finally speak openly about wanting her the way she had for the past ten years, at the very least. She knew if she looked more critically at her earlier years, she would likely find signs of her feelings even then. Abigail had always had a soft spot for Tally that she could never quite explain. It all made sense to her now. The fact that they had gone more than ten years without telling anyone about their feelings was almost laughable, were it not so sad. Abigail still couldn’t believe she’d never made a move, given that she was normally so bold, but Tally was in a different realm. It wasn’t the same as hooking up with just anyone. She’d second guessed herself for so long and now, she would finally get to do all the things to Tally that she only dared dream of.

Her girlfriend’s hands ran across her back, from her lower to her upper back, fingers stopping at the top of her dress, resting on her zipper. Abigail nodded her head and Tally slid the zipper down, her fingers brushing against bare skin as she unfastened her bra. Wordlessly she helped her get undressed and she realized that she felt unusually shy, lay nearly bare on top of Tally, though it wasn’t exactly the first time she was seeing her naked, just under new circumstances. Tally was seeing her with brand new eyes, reverently running her hands along Abigail’s breasts and making her breath hitch as her thumbs brushed against her nipples.

“You are so beautiful, baby,” the word ‘baby’ tumbled easily from Tally’s lips, but her blush deepened as her hand slid further downward between the valley of her breasts to her abdomen. She rested her hand against the top of Abigail’s panties for a moment before she daintily slid her fingers beneath the waistband of her underwear. Abigail was no stranger to being touched, but the way Tally touched her was unlike anything she’d ever felt before. Every touch was measured, soft, and reverent, as if she was worshipping her body. This was an entirely new experience and she was just allowing herself to live in this moment and focus on the way that the redhead was lovingly touching her. As Tally’s fingers slipped into her, she cried out, burying her face against her neck and breathing hard. She had never been this affected before and she didn’t know what to make of it.

Abigail had been in plenty of relationships in her life, but her feelings for the men she’d been with paled in comparison to what she felt for Tally. This was on a whole other plane of existence and she felt as if she’d been waiting her entire life for this moment. Her hips rolled forward hungrily, taking more of Tally inside of her as she pressed loving kisses against the soft skin of her neck. 

“You feel so good,” Abigail whispered, her voice trembling as she lifted her head to look down at Tally, holding her gaze while she worked her fingers into her with utmost care. She knew her fingertips had to be absolutely soaked because she had never been this aroused by anyone before. Goosebumps broke out on her arms as she slowly moved her hips to meet her lover’s thrusts, growing steadily faster as her thumb swiped against her swollen bud, making her cry out in pleasure.

Noting her reaction, Tally repeated the gesture and Abigail trembled, holding onto her girlfriend’s shoulders as she began to ride her hand, unable to hold back any longer. “I love you,” Tally spoke clearly, still holding her gaze, and the words combined with her ministrations pushed Abigail over the edge, shuddering against her as she came. 

She couldn’t get enough of hearing Tally say she loved her. They weren’t words she heard often from anyone but her friends, and Tally had been telling her she loved her for as long as she could remember. Little did she know she had meant the words then the same way she did now. Abigail had felt the same, but she didn’t say the words nearly as often. It didn’t come naturally to her, but she tried. She had always appreciated how giving Tally was of her love, just another thing on the long list of things she admired about her.

“I love you, too,” Abigail echoed, meaning every word more than she ever had before.

She leaned into her, pressing her forehead down against Tally’s, her thumb tracing her dimple as she smiled. She wanted to stay in the moment forever, but just a little while longer would suffice. Once she’d regained control over her body, she wanted to get Tally out of her dress and press kisses to every single inch of her skin. Abigail had wasted too many years yearning for this and she wasn’t going to take this moment for granted. Even Tally was breathless as she looked up at her, cradling Abigail’s face in her hands as she wore a matching grin. The joy was radiating off of them in waves and as cliche as it sounded, this wasn’t them having sex, this was them making love. To hold that love inside for this long had been painful, but now that she’d let it out, Abigail couldn’t and wouldn’t stop.

Their lips came together once more, their kisses slow and lazy as they took their time. Abigail deepened the kiss with her tongue and was surprised when Tally gave her lower lip a playful nip. She pulled back with a smirk, curiously gazing into Tally’s brown eyes. “After all these years, I’m still learning new things about you,” she remarked, running her fingers along the silken skin of her girlfriend’s neck. “Are you into biting, Tal?” The question was posed with an amused lift of her eyebrows.

“When it comes to you, Abi, I’m into anything,” she murmured in response, the words so bold and un-Tally-like in their frankness that she actually shocked Abigail into silence.

Tally smirked, clearly pleased with herself as she pressed her nose against the brunette’s neck, following with a kiss and soon after dragging her teeth across her skin. Abigail let out a soft sigh, because she was supposed to be teasing Tally, not the other way around. She wasn’t going to complain about it, though. They had all night. The cocktail hour this evening was the furthest thing from her mind because the only place Abigail wanted to be was in this bed with her.

Her teeth sank into her neck with more ferocity than she would’ve ever guessed Tally was capable of. This was a side of her that she’d never seen and Abigail liked it, though she quickly turned it around on her, wanting to remind her who was really in control here. After rolling onto her side, Tally did the same, giving Abigail the chance she needed to unzip her gorgeous dress, carefully unwrapping her and savoring every peek of skin until the redhead was completely nude. She took several moments to appreciate her like this, her milky white skin so smooth against her fingers, freckles dusting her shoulders that Abigail couldn’t help but press kisses to. 

She took her time despite the fact that Tally was practically mewling for her, thighs pressed tightly together as Abigail leisurely dragged her mouth across her abdomen, a slow smirk coming to her lips. Without warning she cupped her breast and ran her tongue along her nipple, sucking gently just to feel it harden predictably in her mouth. The way that Tally’s body was responding to her set Abigail ablaze, but she didn’t let her arousal cloud her mind, her desire to worship the beautiful woman beneath her far stronger than anything else.

She was quivering in anticipation as Abigail’s fingers brushed along her shoulders and she kissed her neck, trailing kisses down before stopping at her belly button. Tally grabbed Abigail by the chin, her gaze uncharacteristically sharp as she made her plea.

_ “Please.” _

She’d had enough teasing and Abigail wasn’t cruel enough to make her wait any longer. She had the rest of their lives for her to memorize every curve. Her mouth continued downward, hands sliding beneath Tally’s thighs to gently push them apart and she took a moment to stare, unbelievably affected by how delectable she looked, so perfectly vulnerable as Abigail saw just how slick she was for her. She couldn’t wait another moment to taste her, licking a stripe against her before burying her face against Tally and losing herself in her taste and scent. 

Beautiful sounds reached her ears as she pleasured her, Tally’s moans high pitched and loud, sending heat to Abigail’s core. Even her breath was heavy as her lover panted, tugging at her hair while her thighs tightened around her head, locking her there. She was relentless in her pursuit to send Tally tumbling over the edge, insistent with the careful positioning of her tongue and using her fingers to supplement them with her other hand cupping one of her girlfriend’s breasts. 

Tally whimpered, nearly rising up off of the bed, her thighs trembling against Abigail’s head. That told her she was close and she didn’t dare let up, spreading her open with expert care, her tongue unrelenting. Her girlfriend’s grip on her hair tightened, as did her thighs, her body going rigid as her hips bucked up against Abigail’s face. She let out a soft whine as every muscle suddenly went slack, her hold loosening as her head sank into the pillows. She lay there bonelessly, her eyes dilated and fixed on the ceiling, forehead covered in sweat as her chest heaved.

Abigail lifted her head then, smiling at the spent woman and crawling to her side, wrapping her arms possessively around her before she sought out her lips. Tally returned her kiss, but she couldn’t even move, which made Abigail grin, her hand reverently cascading against her thighs, fingers touching her still sensitive body and making her writhe in response. She had no intention of going another round just yet, because it was clear the redhead needed time to recover. Besides, after all that, she was absolutely starving.

They lay there together for a while in silence, simply basking in the fact that they belonged to one another now. This was a night neither of them would soon forget.

When Abigail suggested they order room service, Tally agreed emphatically, trying to sit up as the brunette snagged the menu from the bedside table. They looked over the menu and after they made their decision, Abigail called the kitchen to place their order. Reluctantly the two of them got dressed, but remained tangled together in bed, making out like two horny teenagers. It was hard to believe she would ever be able to get used to the feeling of this happiness blooming inside of her. More than anything, Abigail was grateful to have found the kind of love that she never believed she deserved.


	13. Carnal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get hot and heavy between Raelle & Scylla.

_June 2020_

It was the hottest day of the year and Raelle was feeling it as she wheeled the gurney in from the ambulance, listening intently to the EMTs assessment of the situation. She and Dr. Quartermaine transferred the patient from the gurney to a bed and pushed him into one of the vacant rooms. Raelle had been assigned to work with Dr. Quartermaine this week and so far, she was a complete hardass. She admired it more than anything, but her shift was nearly through and Raelle felt as if she could barely stand. She mopped the sweat from her brow with a paper towel and washed her hands (yes, even the prosthetic, as it also carried germs) before slipping on a pair of nitrile gloves, standing back so that her attending could get a good look at their patient’s injury. 

He had what looked to be a compound fracture and a pretty gnarly one at that. Understandably, he had passed out, and the attending took that opportunity to gather some of the medical students to come take a peek, since these kinds of injuries didn’t come around every day. There was no doubt he was going to need surgery and while she was eager to scrub in, her hours were nearly up. Rather than go over hours, she decided to give the opportunity to another resident, who seemed more than grateful.

She trashed her gloves and headed to the staff area to grab her bag, inadvertently running into Scylla in the process. It was a good thing she was already hot, or the other doctor would’ve immediately noticed the way she blushed upon seeing her. Scylla wasn’t on shift yet, but had arrived early, and now Raelle realized she’d done this explicitly to run into her. The brunette glanced at the door before she grabbed her by her coat, pulling her in for a harsh kiss. This was a risk given that any other doctor could walk in on them, but clearly Scylla didn’t care about that right now.

Raelle was more than a little embarrassed about how sweaty she was from her shift. “I’m all gross,” she warned and the blue eyed beauty laughed in response.

“No, you’re not,” she assured her with another kiss. “I’m sure you’re in a hurry to get out of here, but I was thinking maybe we could check out the supply closet…?”

Even Rae, who was typically clueless about these sorts of things, knew what that meant. She and Scylla had been spending more time together lately but they had yet to take things to the next level, so to speak. She wasn’t against hooking up in the supply closet, given that it was known to be one of the most frequently used spots in the hospital for that explicit purpose. Employees always gave a courtesy knock and Raelle herself had interrupted other people on more than one occasion. She’d caught Nurse Byron in here with one of the EMTs just last week.

“I’m definitely not opposed, Dr. Ramshorn,” Raelle smirked, “You showed up early with the intention of seducing me, didn’t you?”

Scylla chuckled, wearing the cocky kind of grin that always got Raelle going. “Yes. Not that I had to do much seducing. You seem pretty gung ho.” Winking, she slipped her hands into the pockets of Raelle’s white coat. “Not gonna lie, Dr. Collar, I like you all hot and sweaty.” She squeezed her thighs through the fabric and smirking, she started toward the supply closet down the hall. Raelle waited an appropriate amount of time before following, trying to look as casual as possible even though she was freaking out inside.

When she entered, Scylla wasted no time, pinning her against the wall and crashing their mouths together as her hand slid easily beneath the waistband of her scrubs. Raelle took a sharp breath, nearly slamming her head against the wall as Scylla’s fingers entered her. Most doctors were good with their hands, but my god, Rae was completely shocked by just how good Scylla was. The last thing she expected was for the brunette to tug down her scrub bottoms and her dark boxer briefs at once and get down on her knees. She found herself searching for something to grab onto in a useless attempt to gather herself. 

“Fuck,” Raelle moaned, clapping her right hand over her mouth because if anyone overheard her, she would never live it down. She couldn’t see Scylla with her head buried between her legs, but she just knew she was smirking. She had been self conscious about how sweaty she was, but Scylla truly didn’t seem to mind. She worked her fingers into her faster and looked up, chuckling when she saw the look of pure ecstasy on Raelle’s face.

“That good, huh?” she teased, swiping her bundle of nerves with her thumb and causing her hips to subconsciously buck against her hand. “Let’s get you to come for me, Rae,” the words were whispered but remained very effective and all the blonde doctor could do was hold Scylla’s head in place as she felt her tongue against her again. Her lips closed around her, Raelle clenched her jaw, her heart racing as Scylla hit the right spot again and again and again. She was beginning to feel a bit lightheaded, her muscles tensing up and the warmth blooming between her thighs. Next came her sweet release, which her lover was all too happy to taste, dutifully cleaning her up before pulling her underwear and scrub bottoms back up and getting to her feet. She licked her fingers languidly, not breaking eye contact, and then licked her lips clean, too, smirking as Raelle stared at her in disbelief. 

“Goddess, I love the way you taste. I could do this all damn day,” she confessed, pushing Raelle’s hair out of her eyes. “I should go, but I need you to know that I _really_ don’t want to.”

Raelle didn’t even get the chance to reciprocate, but as she glanced at her phone it was obvious that Scylla needed to head out lest she end up late for her shift. “I don’t want you to, either. You should drop by my place when you’re off. I’ll shower for you and everything.”

“It’s a date,” Scylla agreed, giving Raelle a lingering kiss as her hands slid over the swell of her ass. “You work these scrubs like nobody else. I heard you got a new motorcycle, too. Talk about hot. You have an extra helmet for me?” 

She straightened up her clothes as Raelle admitted that she had already purchased a second helmet, though she didn’t admit she’d bought it with her in mind. They hadn’t put a label on what this was and Scylla seemed in no hurry to do so. For now, she was enjoying getting to know her and all that came along with it. Tonight was a definite highlight. 

“Alright, here I go,” Scylla started toward the door, but then stepped back, put her finger under Raelle’s chin and gave her one more kiss. “Okay, now I go,” she winked before ducking out of the supply closet, leaving Raelle overwhelmed and trying to catch her breath.

There was a knock at the door and someone entered, taking one look at her and letting out a laugh. It was Nurse Byron and as he grabbed some gauze, he eyed Raelle knowingly. “You and Dr. Ramshorn, huh? I knew it. You are not subtle, Doc. Not subtle at all. Has anyone ever told you that your emotions are written all over your face?”

“Um, no?” She laughed nervously, crossing her arms to her chest as she looked at him. “You can’t tell anyone about this. We’re still on the DL. I know how much you love to gossip.”

Byron rolled his eyes while he gathered some more supplies for the kits. “On the DL? Who still says that?” He stopped to look at her. “Don’t worry. I won’t say anything. But you owe me.”

“Owe you what?” She asked as he made his way toward the door.

“I don’t know yet. Consider it an IOU until I come up with something good.” With a wink, he disappeared and left Raelle incredulous once more.

Everyone who worked here was at least _moderately_ certifiable, herself included. There were so many strong personalities that sometimes Raelle felt overwhelmed by it all. But she wouldn’t have it any other way, thriving on the adrenaline and the fact that she could never anticipate what the day would bring. Casually she pushed the door open and walked out to the back exit, still replaying her encounter with Scylla in her mind. This woman was going to be the death of her.

As exhausted as Raelle was from her workday, there was no way she was going to crash out without taking a shower. The hot water felt incredible on her aching body and without even drying her hair she passed out face first on her bed. About ten hours later, she was waking up in a pool of her own saliva. Gross. She quickly switched out her pillowcases, mortified at the thought of Scylla noticing her drool, and threw the rest of her sheets in for good measure. There was no question that things were going to get hot and heavy tonight, might as well make things nice.

Before she could clean up her apartment, though, Rae needed to eat something. Her stomach was growling angrily at her as she hurriedly fried a few eggs, sitting down in front of the television with a mug of coffee, eggs and two pieces of wheat toast. She was slowly beginning to come to life again, now having the energy to pick up a few things, tidying up for her guest. She put some care into her appearance, reapplying her deodorant, spraying some perfume on her pulse points and wetting her hair again before she brushed out the rats nest her bed had formed. By this point, it was only an hour until Scylla’s shift ended and Raelle was beginning to get nervous.

To kill time, she decided to call Tally.

“Hellllloooooo?” The redhead’s voice sounded especially perky at the other end of the phone.

“Uh, hi,” she laughed, “What’s up?”

“Well, somebody wants to say hi.” Tally made the announcement and presumably pushed the speakerphone button before she heard Abigail’s voice. “Hey, Rae.” She, too, sounded very happy.

“Am I missing something here?”

“A lot,” Tally laughed, “It’s kind of a long story, but we’re...officially a thing now, Abigail and I.”

“No fucking shit?! This is seriously awesome, you guys. Are you still at the hotel?”

“Yeah, we go back tomorrow,” Abigail replied, “What are you up to? You sound tired.”

“I just woke up, like an hour ago. Scylla’s coming over in a bit. I was starting to get in my head so I thought I’d call Tally for a distraction. Couldn’t imagine a better one than this. Are you guys gonna tell me how it happened?”

“You know how much tension there was at the diner the other day. Still very present. When we got to our room, I told Tally about how much I wanted to kiss her that night at my apartment. We went down to the convention and when we were grabbing a drink, some douche hit on me, so Tally got all jealous and scary on him saying how she didn’t appreciate him hitting on her girlfriend-” she laughed and Tally jumped in to finish the story.

“So Abigail liked the sound of that and I asked her if she wanted to be my girlfriend…”

Abigail sounded gleeful as she recalled the events. “And I said yes. Obviously. We went upstairs, kissed and y’know, some other stuff…”

“That’s pretty much it. Oh, we also had room service. That lobster was worth _evvvvery_ penny.”

“Not to mention the chocolate covered strawberries.”

Raelle chuckled, imagining the two of them still lying together in the hotel bed, which felt like the most serendipitous thing. The ‘mistake’ that was made seemed more like fate intervening in the lives of two women who had spent too long hiding their feelings from one another. “Sounds decadent,” she commented, moving to lay down on her couch.

They continued to chat, Abigail talking about her encounter with her shitty older brother, Apollo, and how he threatened to tell her parents that she’d shown up with Tally in tow. The story about how she’d told him off in front of everything was gold and Raelle found herself wishing she’d been there to see that. She’d never liked the guy, he was arrogant and had always treated Abigail like shit. As far as she was concerned, the entire Bellweather family, sans Abigail, was unbearable.

There was a firm knock on the door and Raelle’s eyes went wide, her stomach clenching with anticipation. She quickly said goodbye to her friends and jumped up to answer the door. Scylla had already gotten showered and changed, but looked as exhausted as she had twelve hours prior. Before Rae could even say so much as a hello, Scylla was initiating a kiss, stepping through the threshold of the door and closing it with her foot.

She laughed against her mouth, surprised by how eager she seemed to be, though she definitely wasn’t complaining. Raelle returned her insistent kisses but eventually broke away, hooking her fingers into the belt loops of Scylla’s jeans. “Hi to you, too,” she teased, gazing into her eyes. “How was work?”

“You’re sweet, but I don’t want to talk right now. I spent my entire shift thinking about you,” she placed her hands on top of Rae’s where they were resting just against her hips. “And these gorgeous fingers of yours.” Scylla faltered, holding her gaze for a moment. “Unless you’d rather talk?”

It was sweet of her to give her a choice, but Raelle didn’t even have to consider the offer. “Let me show you my bedroom,” she said as suggestively as possible, thankful that she’d had the forethought to wash her sheets. Scylla dutifully followed, checking out her apartment on the way, making no move to hide her curiosity even as she entered her bedroom.

“Here we are,” Raelle knew she sounded a bit awkward, but Scylla laughed anyway.

“At least we have a bed this time. Not that the supply closet wasn’t hot. Might have to make that a regular thing,” she commented as she began to unbutton Raelle’s flannel shirt, licking her lips at the sight of her Adidas sports bra. “Do you have any idea how sexy you are, Rae?” She purred, pushing the shirt off of her shoulders and letting it fall onto the floor.

Scylla had backed her up against the bed, gazing at her as if she were prey and Raelle loved every fucking minute of it, but this was her turf, and she needed to take control. She grabbed the brunette’s hips and sidestepped her, switching their positions before she tugged Scylla’s light blue sweater up over her head. She looked a bit surprised by the power shift, but wore a pleased grin as Rae pushed her down onto the bed. 

Without a word, she began to unfasten Scylla’s jeans, pulling them slowly down to reveal toned legs. Most of her body was now revealed and Raelle was delighted to discover a smattering of freckles over nearly every patch of her skin. Clearly the brunette had made the choice not to wear a bra tonight and as Rae’s fingers brushed against the front of her panties, she realized the effect she’d had on the other woman. Her breath caught in her throat as she lifted her head, meeting Scylla’s intense blue gaze. She was starting to blush now that Raelle had seen firsthand how aroused she was. 

Raelle shifted so that she was sitting between Scylla’s legs and she began to press kisses to her inner thighs. With a smirk, she decided to take a risk and ask about something a little bit risky. “How do you feel about me using a strap on you?” She whispered, peppering her thighs with endless kisses.

“Very good,” Scylla chuckled lowly, reaching down to stroke Raelle’s hair. “Go ahead and put it on, but you’ve got to work me up to it first."

With a nod she pressed a final kiss to her inner thigh, just at the edge of her panty line, then stood up to get the strap on from her closet. Raelle had it well hidden despite living alone, because she valued her privacy above all else. Scylla’s eyes never left her as she stepped into the harness and tightened it around her hips. She slipped the silicone dildo into the harness and licked her lips before she climbed back onto the bed and unceremoniously removed Scylla’s soaked panties, discarding them on the floor. 

Her index and middle finger ran along her folds before she sank one finger into her, watching raptly as her hips rolled up into her hand, a small whimper leaving her lover’s open mouth. As requested, she worked her way up from one finger to two, deftly avoiding Scylla’s most sensitive spot, not ready for her peak before she got a chance to use the strap. She was pleading with her before long and Raelle moved to straddle her, letting her feel the silicone press into her. She closed her hand around the dildo and carefully guided it inside of Scylla, her gaze on her face so that she could see every expression she made. Her movements were slow at first, getting her used to it, but it didn’t take long for things to escalate and for both of them to lose themselves in pleasure.

The sight of the toy entering Scylla was one she would not soon forget, nor the sounds of their bodies moving together rhythmically, her lover’s moans and labored breathing music to her ears. There was more to what was between them than just sex, but this was definitely the most sexual chemistry she’d ever had with anyone. Raelle was fulfilling many fantasies right now and only hoped this wouldn’t be the last time they did this. Her feelings were growing just as her attraction had. 

Rae tried to focus, though it was difficult with the other end of the toy rubbing against her so perfectly. That was why she’d chosen this particular strap and this was the first time she’d gotten to use it. She couldn’t imagine a better way to break it in, her thrusts growing harder as Scylla neared her peak. Raelle’s left hand slid up her body, cupping her breast as she continued to slam into her, and the other hand slipped between her thighs. The extra stimulation seemed to be just what she needed to tumble over the edge, and the sight of her, not to mention the sounds, were what sent Raelle over right after her. She panted as she stilled her hips, and after she leaned down, they shared several passionate kisses, which the brunette deepened with her tongue.

“I like you so much,” Scylla whispered almost shyly, like she wasn’t sure she should say it. “And not just because of the way you fuck me.” There was a glimmer in her blue eyes that made Raelle’s stomach clench. Every word she said always sounded sexy to her, which made working shifts with her more than a little difficult.

She took a breath and smiled, kissing Scylla’s cheek sweetly. “I like you, too. So much it freaks me out.” Carefully she slid out of her and unfastened the harness, throwing the strap on her side table before she pulled her arms around her beautiful lover.

“It freaks you out?” Scylla murmured, turning to face Raelle with an unreadable expression on her face. “What do you mean?”

Raelle realized as she looked at her that her walls had come up, and that she was preparing herself for Rae to completely break her heart. She shook her head, cupping her cheek with her hand. “Not whatever you’re thinking, Scyl. I haven’t dated in a while. I forgot how good all this feels. I just keep waiting for something to go wrong, and that’s not because of you. I’ve always had the worst luck, and then I met you…”

“Looks like your luck has changed,” Scylla purred, nuzzling against her. “Rae, I know we haven’t talked about this yet, but we’re...pretty much dating at this point, right? Casually?” The blonde nodded, a slow smile coming to her lips as she realized what was about to happen. “What if...it wasn’t casual?”

Her face had gone red and Raelle bit her lip as she met Scylla’s gaze. “Just...to clarify, you are asking-”

“You to be my girlfriend, yes.”

Scylla seemed impatient and maybe a little nervous, her eyes wide as she looked expectantly at Raelle for an answer. It was only the second time she’d seen her falter. She didn’t want to keep her waiting, especially since she knew the answer without even thinking about it.

“Yeah. Yes. I want to be your girlfriend.”


	14. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Abigail tells her parents about her resignation & her new relationship.
> 
> Trigger warning for homophobic language.

_ November 2007 _

Thanksgiving had never been anything but a lie. Abigail had little to feel thankful for growing up in her toxic household and today was no different. She recognized her privilege growing up with money, her parents successful business meaning they could go on fancy vacations and that Abigail & her brother were pretty much able to do whatever they wanted. The thing about money was that it didn’t mean anything to her because she would’ve much rather had love than money. During the holidays it became glaringly obvious which of the two was a priority in her family. Abigail could count on her hand the number of times her parents had said they loved her, and whenever she tried to think of a single instance where they showed their ‘love’ using anything but money, she realized there wasn’t one.

As young children, she & her brother were raised by nannies, none of whom seemed to last in the home for longer than a few months. At first, Abigail would get attached to them and then would cry for weeks mourning the woman who’d been more of a mother than the person who had given birth to her. But after a while, it was simply how it was, and she didn’t let herself love anyone, because she had grown tired of getting hurt. The only love that Abigail had in her life came from her friends and strangely enough, from their families. As a result, she had never been an affectionate person, which had caused problems for as long as she could remember. People thought she was mean because she didn’t want them to hug her, and it took a long time before she was even comfortable with platonic affection from her friends. She knew as she stepped into the kitchen that her friends were probably having nice holiday meals with their family, not for the sake of appearances, but out of genuine love and gratitude.

Their personal chef was putting the finishing touches on the Thanksgiving meal and Abigail gave her a polite nod before grabbing a bag of chips out of the cupboard. As good as it smelled, she had no intention of sitting down with her ‘family’ to eat dinner, not after everything that had happened this week. Her disgust for her parents, and for her brother, who seemed to get more distant and more like their parents with every passing year, was ever present, but there was more to it than that this time.

She was angry with them because they had found out that both of Abigail’s best friends were gay and they had insisted that she find ‘more appropriate people to spend her time with.’ She was forbidden from having sleepovers with them and while they didn’t explicitly ban her from hanging out with them, it was pretty much implied. There was no way in hell she was going to cut out of her life the only people who cared about her. So she was protesting.

As she started down the hall with her bag of chips, she bumped into her mother in the hallway. She glanced at the food in her hand and glowered at her daughter.

“I thought I told you to stop eating that junk, Abigail. Thanksgiving dinner is nearly ready and you’re stuffing your face with greasy potato chips?”

She popped a chip into her mouth and crunched loudly. In her teenage years, she was becoming more rebellious than ever and sometimes, she couldn’t help but be the biggest asshole she could. She was just trying to reciprocate the attitude she constantly received from her family members. “I’m not coming to dinner, but thanks for the invite.” Abigail tried to push past her mother, but she grabbed her harshly by the arm and her grip was so tight she couldn’t wrench her arm away.

“Are you getting this attitude from your lesbo friends? Because a Bellweather doesn’t behave like this, even if she’s a moody teenager.”

Abigail clenched her jaw and lifted her head proudly. “Maybe I don’t _ want _ to be a Bellweather. Let go of me. Now.” Her voice was firm, but even, and she met her mother’s gaze, daring her to say another word. She had never thought of herself as intimidating, but strangely enough it seemed to work. She yanked her arm away the moment she could and rubbed the muscle, giving her mother a look. “I don’t want to be here. You don’t want me here either. So I’m going to Tally’s.”

“I don’t think spending time with that  _ dyke _ is a good idea.”

“You  _ don’t _ call her that.” Abigail stood tall and backed her mother up against the wall, dark eyes drifting to her throat as she tried to convince herself not to choke her. The anger management must have been working because she managed to hold herself back, albeit barely. “If you ever call Tally or Raelle something like that again, you will regret it.” After giving her one last glare, she disappeared to her bedroom to grab some of her things, not intending to stay here tonight regardless of what her parents had to say about it.

She called Tally, just to make sure it was okay first, then jumped on her bicycle and rode it through her rich neighborhood and downtown, where her shoulders were finally able to relax. Abigail always felt on edge, not just at her home, but in her neighborhood, where it seemed like everyone was watching her. She was pretty sure that people reported shit back to her parents, because there were some things that they couldn’t have known otherwise. Abigail was grateful for the autumn breeze as she sped over the sidewalk, because if she’d been making this trek in summer, she would’ve been soaked with sweat.

She put down her kickstand and started up the porch, knocking politely on the Craven door. It was Tally’s eldest sister, Tatiana, who answered and she didn’t even say hello, just screamed over her shoulder “TALLY, IT’S FOR YOU!” before disappearing down the hall to her bedroom. Before Tally could make it to her, Abigail was ambushed by her little sister, Tessa. The six year old was hugging her legs when her friend practically sprinted down the staircase.

“Aw, Tess, you beat me to it,” she laughed, then gave Abigail a hug, too. She didn’t realize how badly she needed it until Tally’s arms were already around her and she reciprocated, just standing there reveling in the feeling of having someone hold her. She still hadn’t grown used to that.

Tara, who was just a year or two older than Tally, walked past as they were hugging and she stopped, looking over at them with a grin. “Damn, Tal, let the poor girl breathe.” She adjusted her sports cap, which she was wearing backwards on her head and gave Abigail a quick hello.

Despite having three sisters, Tally didn’t seem to fight with them much. In fact, the relationship she had with her entire family felt like something from a Hallmark movie. That was difficult for Abigail to imagine because her life had never and would never be like this. Sometimes when she was at Tally’s, she felt like she was on the outside looking in, but more often than not, they made her feel just as much a part of the family, which was something she’d never had before. She loved every single one of them, including her mother, but most of all, she loved Tally.

Together they ran upstairs, Abigail dropping her backpack by the door before she lay back on Tally’s bed, looking up at the glow in the dark stars that had been on her ceiling since preschool. There was a certain kind of comfort here at her home away from home. Tally’s house felt more like home than her own. Tally wordlessly slipped her fingers into hers and turned toward her, just looking at her with concern in her eyes. She knew when Abigail was having a hard time without her having to say a word. Since Abigail wasn’t great with her feelings, she found that to be really helpful, because she didn’t have to try to explain it. Tally knew everything with just a look. It was part of why they worked so well together.

“My parents don’t want me to hang out with you guys anymore,” she finally said after a long silence and Tally furrowed her brows, because the comment really bothered her.

“Why? They’ve always liked us before.”

Not really, but she wasn’t going to tell her that. There was a reason her parents weren’t friends with Tally or Raelle’s parents. They looked down on them for many things, their socioeconomic status being one of them. Raelle’s father was a mechanic and her mother was in the military. Respectable enough, sure, but not on their level, according to her parents. Before he died, Tally’s father owned a bar and after his death, her mother took it over. Her stepfather was a firefighter, which Abigail thought was pretty cool, but none of this was acceptable. Even so, they had tolerated Abigail’s friendship with Raelle and Tally until now. Knowing they weren’t straight was the last straw for them. The thing was, if they tried to make her choose between them and her friends, Abigail was going to pick her friends.

Abigail didn’t know how to put it delicately, so she just decided to be blunt. “They’re homophobic. They just found out that you and Rae like girls, and they think I shouldn’t be around you. They say you’re a bad influence.” The way Tally’s face changed broke her heart. There was one thing about her that would never change: Tally desperately wanted everyone to like her. Abigail didn’t give a fuck what people thought. It was funny sometimes how different the two of them were, yet how close they had become. She pulled her arm around her friend, trying to comfort her. “I’m sorry, Tal. They’re assholes. But I’m not going to let them tell me who I can hang out with. I’ll be eighteen in two years and none of this will matter anyway. I think maybe when I leave for college, I’ll just never come back.”

“I just don’t understand how my sexuality affects you, or them…” Tally whispered, sounding really hurt and Abigail let go of her hand so that she could pull both of her arms around her, her friend’s head resting on her chest as she sighed. 

She stroked her red hair as she considered her words. “It doesn’t, but they think hanging out with you guys is going to make me gay somehow. Like it’s contagious…” Abigail giggled because the thought was so ludicrous. “I love you, Tal. I’m not going anywhere, no matter what they say, okay? We’ve been friends for almost my entire life and you are the _ best  _ person I know. The way you care about people, you’re so selfless. Everything about you, Tally, is everything that I wish I could be. I’m selfish. I’m angry. I don’t know who I am or what I want and this point, I don’t know if I ever will. I’m not sure I know how to really be happy, but at least I have you.”

“Hey,” it was Tally’s turn to comfort, and she was good at it. She cupped Abigail’s face in her hands, holding her gaze intently. “You’re an amazing person, Abi. I’ve admired you ever since we were kids. You’re so confident, so strong, and sometimes I feel like every single weakness I have, is your strength. I’ve learned so much from you. Maybe this is weird to say...if it is, I’m sorry, but I think we were meant to find each other. It’s like...you complete me?” She scrunched her nose and laughed softly. “Yeah, definitely weird. Sorry.” Her face was red and Abigail couldn’t help but think how pretty she looked.

Abigail pressed her forehead against Tally’s, meeting her brown eyes with a small smile. “I like weird.” She chuckled, pushing a strand of red hair behind Tally’s ear without breaking eye contact. “I don’t think it’s that weird, though. I feel the same way. Don’t get me wrong, I love Rae, and I always will. But you and me, we’re…”

_ “Different.” _

She nodded. “Yeah. We’re Abigail and Tally.”

“Tally and Abigail,” she corrected, putting her name first and sticking her tongue out at Abigail. Given their proximity, her tongue accidentally touched Abigail’s nose and she squealed, pulling back and wiping at her face.

Abigail was just about to tease the redhead for licking her when she heard her mother calling up the stairs that dinner was ready. Tally never moved faster than when there was food involved. She got to her feet and raced Abigail down the stairs, nearly taking her little sister out on the way to the kitchen. Unlike her family, who ate together in the dining room every night, Tally’s family all piled into the living room around the television to eat. It was a lot more comfortable, but her parents definitely wouldn’t have found it appropriate. She hated her family dinners, the straight backed uncomfortable chairs, the prim dinner conversations, the too many forks, being served by staff. She always felt abnormal there. But as she lined up behind Tally’s sisters to get her Thanksgiving dinner, Abigail couldn’t have felt more at home.

  
  
  


* * *

_ July 2020 _

Tonight was the night and Abigail was uncharacteristically anxious as she paced her apartment, rehearsing her speech in her head over and over again as Tally watched her from the couch with a look of concern on her face. She only let her turn and pace a few more times before she got up and stepped in front of her, taking Abigail’s hands in hers.

“Hey. You’re just working yourself up,” her voice was gentle as she got Abigail’s attention, reminding her to take some deep breaths, but even Tally knew that this was a big enough deal that she couldn’t go into it without some nerves. “I’m here,” she whispered, pressing her lips against her jaw. The simple touch brought her back from the brink of breakdown and she gazed into her eyes, reminding herself that so long as Tally was by her side, she was going to be okay.

They were going to dinner with Abigail’s parents tonight and she’d made the decision to bring Tally along with her for moral support. Their dislike for Tally might make things all the more awkward, but she didn’t care about their comfort, only her own. She and her girlfriend had actually gotten to work on fulfilling her dream and it was time to tell her parents she was resigning as CEO of Bellweather Corp. Since she was bringing Tally, she was also going to use this opportunity to come out. They were already going to be pissed at her, so it was hard to imagine her dating a woman could somehow make things any worse. There was no pretending tonight was going to be fun. She was going to drop the bomb before they ate and then get out of there, because she didn’t need to stick around to be screamed at in a public setting, which they had already done to her numerous times before.

“I think I’m going to tell them about my resignation first, then tell them about you before we dip.” She had gone through this in her mind so many times already. If she told them about her resignation first, the focus would be on that, so she wouldn’t be as hurt. If they started insulting her sexuality or worse, her girlfriend, she would be the one making a big scene. Instead she would tell them as she was leaving and give them no opportunity for a response.

Abigail gave Tally a hug, breathing in her scent before following her outside. She had already let her driver go, but because she was worked up, her girlfriend had insisted that she be the one to drive. It was good logic and she couldn’t argue. The drive to the restaurant felt unusually fast, her stomach in knots as she slid from the vehicle and immediately took Tally’s hand to steady herself. It was incredible how just taking her hand seemed to slow her heart rate.

Unfortunately, her parents had already arrived, so she had no time to gather herself. As she approached, she could see the disapproval on their faces when they saw her holding Tally’s hand. She held her head high and carried on despite the voice in her head telling her to run. She reminded herself that she wasn’t a kid anymore and she was going to live her life how she pleased. 

Tally tightened her hold on her hand as they slid into the booth together, her girlfriend having noticed that she was shaking. Her parents already had drinks, so Abigail and Tally ordered some, but they had no intentions of staying for dinner.

“Hello, Tally,” her father said as politely as he could manage.

Her girlfriend smiled graciously. ‘Kill them with kindness’ had always been her motto. She said hello to both of Abigail’s parents, but her mother didn’t even respond.

Instead she affixed her gaze to Abigail. She could tell she was pissed by the look in her eyes but it didn’t faze her. “Do you mind telling us what we’re doing here?” She asked impatiently, her arms crossed to her chest, her stance heavily guarded likely due to Tally’s presence.

“Sure, mom. We don’t need pleasantries anyway. Let’s cut to the chase.” She pulled a folder out of her bag and slid it across the table. “I’m tendering my resignation effective immediately.”

_ “What? Why?” _

Abigail laughed bitterly, her shock more amusing than anything. “Don’t act so surprised. You knew this was coming after the way you treated me in the board meeting last month. I don’t have to put up with your bullshit anymore. I have other projects to focus on, so I’m done with the company. You’ll have no problem finding someone to fill my shoes, I’m sure.”

“This is entirely unnecessary, Abigail. Did she talk you into this?” She pointed at Tally, who was drinking from her glass of water and looked taken aback.

“For the last time, her name is Tally. I know you know that. And no, I came up with this idea all by myself. The thing is, you don’t see me as your daughter, or even as a person. I am capable of coming up with great ideas, but I was just a puppet CEO you guys installed to do your bidding. It was never my company and never will be. Believe me, we’ll all be much happier this way. Speaking of Tally, there’s something else I came here to tell you.”

She placed their hands onto the table so her parents could see their still intertwined fingers.

It was her father’s turn to be confused. “What?” He sputtered, not understanding.

“Let me help you connect the dots. This is Tally. She’s my girlfriend.”

“Your...friend who’s a girl,” her mother tried to understand, but it looked like her brain had shriveled up and died because she didn’t want to believe what her daughter was saying.

Abigail shook her head, not taking her eyes off of her mother, who was clearly in denial. “No. The girl that I’m dating, who I kiss on the lips and sleep with every night.” She actually heard her mother gasp.

“Abigail Minerva Bell-”

She put up her hand to silence her. “Don’t. I don’t want to be a Bellweather anymore. It means nothing to me. Just as I mean nothing to you. I’m done trying to make you love me. I’m tired. I have my own family now. My own home. I don’t need to listen to anything else you have to say.” Before she stood up, Abigail drank her entire glass of white wine in one gulp. “Have a nice life.” She muttered, flipping them off until Tally covered up her hand, trying to get her to move toward the door.

“Uh, WOW,” her girlfriend remarked once they made it to the car. 

Abigail put her face in her hands and screamed as loud as she could, making Tally jump and nearly hit her head on the ceiling of the car. When she uncovered her face, she realized that the redhead was staring at her and then remembered she’d never done that in front of her before. She could feel her face growing hot. “Sorry. I need to let it out or I’ll explode.”

“It’s okay. That was quite the scream. I didn’t know you could be that loud. Maybe I need to try some new things in bed,” Tally joked in an attempt to break the ice, which Abigail appreciated. It had been a rough evening and despite all that had happened, she was ready to eat some dinner.

The rest of their evening was relatively uneventful, which was just the way she liked it. Just the two of them on the couch eating takeout. As Abigail looked over at Tally, she caught her slurping a noodle and laughed, leaning back against the sofa. Having her here was something she had grown used to in the course of the past couple weeks. The truth was that she didn’t want Tally to go back.

As she finished up her meal, she put her hand on her girlfriend’s knee, causing her to look up at her.

“What?” Tally’s eyes were wide, sauce on her lips.

Before answering, Abigail wiped her face with a clean napkin, unable to keep from smiling at her. “Do you want to move in with me?”

“Are you- are you serious?” Tally sounded genuinely shocked and Abigail wasn’t sure if she was into the idea or not. She simply nodded her head as her girlfriend’s face turned pink. “Yeah, I...I’ve been dreading going home,” she confessed with a grin of disbelief that matched Abigail’s own. “My lease is up next month. Is that too soon?”

“Definitely not. Let’s do this.”

  
  



	15. Cravenweather

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tally & Abigail have a proposal for Scylla & Raelle.

_ August 2020 _

Tally and Abigail had been living together for a little over a month now, their apartment now a mishmash of both of their styles, as they had compromised on what furniture pieces to keep and what to get rid of. Tally had no complaints, finding that it didn’t matter where she lay her head, only that she was next to Abigail. 

In their time living together, the two of them had gotten even closer and their relationship deepened more than they ever could have anticipated. They had been friends for most of their lives and they thought they knew everything there was to know, but there was still so much there that Tally had never gotten to see. Abigail liked those weird face masks that cleaned the toxins from her skin. She nearly always slept with a hair wrap on and patiently explained it to her girlfriend when she asked about it. 

Tally was almost certain that Abigail was learning things about her too. She slept with a mouth guard, which wasn’t at all cute, and had never worn it to their sleepovers before. She preferred cinnamon toothpaste instead of mint. All of these were small, inconsequential things, but they represented the mundane, domestic life that they now shared together.

Things weren’t boring by any means. In fact, Tally was sure they had already had sex on every surface in the apartment. They were working their way through all of the takeout options that delivered to their apartment and were ranking them, just for fun. On Sundays, they cleaned the house together, singing, dancing and always laughing. If there was one thing their home had it was laughter, but there was also love. So much love.

Tally’s love for Abigail had grown in ways she had never expected. She thought she loved her as much as she could, yet every day she found something else that made her love her more. This was the most blissful she’d ever been and Tally had never seen Abigail smile this much. To know that it was because of her was the most incredible thing in the world.

They had gotten lost in their love nest, working on their plans to open a hospital together, and they hadn’t seen Raelle in quite some time. That was why Tally had suggested a double date, which was way overdue considering how long Rae had been dating Scylla at this point. There were plenty of options, but Tally wanted something better than dinner and a movie. 

She took it upon herself to choose their destination  —  a carnival. She couldn’t think of anything more fun and there were lots of things to do. Abigail seemed a bit grumpy about it at first but as Tally entered, she heard the sound of children laughing and saw all the bright lights and her face lit up, too. That improved her girlfriend’s mood immensely. She was pretty sure the only gauge for her happiness now was whether Tally was happy, too.

As she looked over at her friends, she noticed they were smiling too. It was Scylla who suggested they play some carnival games. Tally was bad at them, but they were a lot of fun and she couldn’t help but laugh when she missed every single balloon. Abigail, however, was focused and accurate. She popped every single balloon and won the biggest animal, turning to Tally to ask which one she wanted. 

“The unicorn,” she said with a wide grin, squealing as she took it into her arms and squeezed. It was huge but she’d never had anyone win something for her. Somehow it meant way more than buying a stuffed animal like this at a store. She was still beaming as her friends dragged them to the next game booth, one of those water races. 

Scylla lifted a brow as she turned toward Abigail. “Rematch?” The three of them were incredibly competitive and Tally chose to sit this one out, hugging the toy to her chest as they played the game. It was Scylla who won this round and she chose a light up top hat which she promptly put on her head. She looked ridiculous and Tally couldn’t help but grin every time she looked at her.

There were more games to play, with Abigail proving herself highly adept at most, including winning them a goldfish. Tally was still trying to come up with names as they walked together, then stopped in her tracks when she realized they’d wandered into the food section of the carnival. Each of them split up, going after their favorites, then reconvened at the picnic table where Tally was already eating her pink cotton candy. Abigail funnel cake, Scylla her caramel apple and Raelle her churros.

“This is so good,” Scylla murmured before taking a big bite out of her caramel apple.

“I can’t remember the last time I’ve been to one of these things,” Raelle was going to town on her churros, but they were making her stomach hurt because they hadn’t eaten dinner yet.

Tally’s eyes were bright as she turned her head and caught Abigail’s gaze. She looked just as happy as she felt. They traded their funnel cake and cotton candy, each eating the other’s treats. As Tally leaned in to give Abigail a kiss, she smiled against her lips, brow furrowing when Abigail told her that her face was all sticky. She cleaned up while the others finished their snacks.

Because of the toys and fish that they had accumulated, they couldn’t all go on the rides at the same time. Tally insisted that her and Abigail get on the ferris wheel first, and as they started rising toward the sky she realized that this wasn’t the first time they had been on a ferris wheel together. There was one big difference, though, she thought as she leaned comfortably against Abigail’s shoulder. 

“I can’t wait to spend our lives together,” Tally whispered, surprised when Abigail shifted to take her face in her hands and gave her a passionate kiss. 

She had never been an affectionate person to begin with, but especially not in public. Sure, they were on a ferris wheel, but that didn’t mean no one could see them. Abigail had changed so much when they got together and she was beginning to discover that she was changing, too. It was beautiful how they were carefully crafting their life together and though they had just made things official, Tally had not a single doubt that Abigail would be by her side for the rest of her life. 

An eventual marriage felt inevitable and she only hoped that before that day came, Abigail would be able to repair her relationship with her family. If they got married, Tally’s family would be Abigail’s, too, but she knew how much she was hurting. She never said it, but she didn’t have to. Tally had a hard time believing Abigail’s parents could be so cruel and unfeeling that they felt no love for her. It was hard to imagine anyone not loving Abigail. But no matter what happened, Tally was Abigail’s family. She always had been and she always would be.

They shared kisses from the top of the ferris wheel to the bottom, pointing out the constellations in the sky, which Abigail knew by heart. When their feet were firmly affixed to the ground, they took over for holding all of their things and let Scylla and Raelle have their turn. 

Together they sat on a bench, eyes following the movements of the ferris wheel as people lined up to get on it. Tally put her stuffed unicorn on the ground and reached for Abigail’s hand, smiling over at her. Every moment they had together was special, even if they weren’t saying anything at all. She was smitten and had been since the first moment she’d met Abigail Bellweather on the playground all those years ago. Now they were beginning their lives together, living in the same apartment and planning to open their hospital in the next few months.

Tally was going to stay on as CEO at Sunrise Solutions, but she would split her time between her company and the hospital. She and Abigail would be co-heads, and they had already decided who their first hires would be. Well, that was assuming they said yes. Tonight was about more than a double date as the two of them had intended to talk to Raelle & Scylla about their plans and gauge their interest in working together. That would likely be discussed over dinner, and if Tally’s stomach was any indication, they’d be eating soon enough.

A few rides later, they made the trek out to Tally’s vehicle, loading up their stuff in the back before they picked up food on the way home. She carried the fish bowl inside, grateful that she’d insisted on buying some fish food before they’d grabbed their own carryout order. She never would’ve forgiven herself if the poor fish starved to death. Tally placed the bowl on the kitchen counter, leaning down to look at the little orange fish floating in the water. 

“Are you coming?” Abigail called out from the living room.

“Yeah, I’m just feeding the fish!” She called back before she poured some flakes into the water. The fish must have been just as hungry as she was because it was already rising to the surface to eat. It occurred to her that she didn’t know anything about this fish and as she walked into the living room, she wondered aloud, “How do you know if a goldfish is a girl or a boy?”

Raelle laughed as she put down her spoonful of mashed potatoes, slipping her phone from her pocket. “I’ll Google it,” she declared, typing the question into her phone and then clearing her throat dramatically as she read the screen. “ To identify a female goldfish, look for a rounder, thicker body shape. Females may also have a bulge on one side as breeding season approaches, and their vent, or anal opening, may protrude slightly. Male goldfish often have a thinner, more streamlined body shape than females, with a concave vent and a midline ridge.”

“So, Tally, does the fish have a protruding anal opening?” Scylla asked seriously before letting out a laugh. They all started laughing but Tally put down her food so she could run into the kitchen and grab the fish bowl, carrying it back slowly so she didn’t spill any water.

They were able to determine that it was a female fish and then attempted to settle on a name.

Abigail came up with the first suggestion. “Tally Junior,” She said with a grin, pointing out that the fish was nearly the same color as Tally’s hair, though, in her words, she wasn’t nearly as cute. After a moment, the rest of them started shouting out their own ideas.

‘Goldeen’ was Tally’s idea, mostly to tease Abigail, who had been the one who was most obsessed with Pok **é** mon when they were growing up.

Raelle offered up the name of one of their favorite shows, shouting,“Wynonna!”

Scylla came up with the final suggestion, ‘Sappho.’ She had to explain to Abigail who Sappho was, because she was sitting there completely confused. It was so precious. Unable to determine which name to use, they each wrote theirs down on a piece of paper and shoved them into the empty restaurant bag before shaking it up. Tally closed her eyes, reached in and pulled out a singular piece of paper. As soon as she read it, she started giggling.

“Which is it?” Abigail yelled, grabbing the piece of paper and letting out a shriek of laughter. “TALLY JUNIOR! All I do is win.” She pumped her fist in the air in celebration before she kissed Tally’s cheek and leaned in to speak to the fish. “Hello, Tally Junior. We love you.” She dramatically kissed the outside of the bowl. “She does look like you, if you were a fish, I mean.”

Tally rolled her eyes, but it  _ was  _ pretty funny that the fish was going to have her name. With the fish named and the food eaten, it was time to bring up their proposition. She left it to Abigail since it was her initial idea and she nudged her gently, gesturing to their friends.

“Oh. Right. We have news.”

Raelle’s eyes widened as she looked at the two of them. “Are you guys getting married?”

“No. Not yet anyway,” Tally added with a grin as Abigail’s arm slid around her shoulders.

“I resigned as CEO of Bellweather Corp,” she paused for dramatic effect, allowing Raelle time to gasp before she continued, “And Tally and I are working on a new project. We’re opening a new hospital. They’re breaking ground on it next month. It should be up and running in January. So we were wondering...would you guys like to come work with us?”

Raelle’s mouth hung open and Scylla seemed surprised too, but she didn’t know them as well so she didn’t know what a big deal it was for Abigail to leave the company. She turned to her girlfriend, discussing the offer quietly enough that Tally couldn’t hear them. After a little while, Rae turned back toward them with a resolute look on her face. 

“We’re interested. But we’re residents, so we’d have to look at how to enter a new residency program. Or you guys could wait for us...can I be the peds department head?” Raelle had finally chosen her speciality after having some great interactions with children that cemented her decision. 

“Right. We knew that,” Abigail nudged Tally, who did not tell her that, but neither were going to admit that they hadn’t done enough research. “There will always be a spot for you if you want it. For both of you. Obviously you can be whatever you want, but you have to earn it. I’m against nepotism,” she chuckled, winking knowingly at their friend.

Scylla asked curiously, “So, what are you naming the hospital?”

“Cravenweather Memorial Hospital.”

  
  



	16. Future

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Six months later, a lot has changed.

_ Six Months Later _

_ January 2021 _

The engine roared as Raelle pulled her motorcycle into the newly paved parking lot, admiring how smooth it felt against the tires. She smirked as she noticed the motorcycle spot at the very front of the building, likely put there just for her. She parked the bike and took off her helmet, shaking her head and running her fingers through her hair. The hospital had opened a week ago and Raelle had been there for the ribbon cutting, watching with pride as Abigail cut the ribbon with a comically large pair of scissors. She wasn’t working there yet because she had to complete her residency, but Scylla had finished her own and was now head of neurology. Raelle couldn’t have been more proud of all of them.

She had agreed to meet them for lunch at the hospital cafeteria, which was higher class than most at Abigail’s insistence. Raelle took off her gloves and shoved them into the pockets of her leather jacket on the way inside, ready for the heat inside to take the chill out of her bones. Her motorcycle was great, but she hadn’t accounted for winter when she’d made the decision. She could only drive when there wasn’t ice on the road, which in January, was pretty rare. As she entered the cafeteria, she spotted Tally sitting at one of the tables and she immediately jumped up, pulling Rae into a hug.

Tally didn’t work at the hospital full time and had probably come to join them from Sunrise Solutions, which was just a few minutes away. “Abigail’s running a little late,” she explained, gesturing to her phone. “She’s firing someone. I’m pretty sure she’s  _ enjoying _ it,” the redhead snickered.

“And Scylla’s out of surgery. She should be down soon,” Rae checked her phone and smiled. “It’s good to see you, Tal. You’re...glowing.”

She meant it, too. Tally was never without a smile on her face, not as long as she’d known her, but there was something different about her smile this time. Her skin was glowing and there was this distant, dreamy look in her eyes. 

“It’s called being happy,” she answered, nudging her friend beneath the table. Raelle couldn’t help but think Tally was keeping something from her, maybe waiting for Abigail to arrive before they made some kind of big announcement. 

She was excited just thinking about the possibilities. Seeing Abigail and Tally fall in love was the greatest thing to ever happen to her. Raelle couldn’t believe she had been oblivious to it for that long, but she really believed her friends had been great at hiding it. She never would have guessed that they had feelings for one another and now, they were the most stable couple she knew. Their transition from friends to girlfriends had been totally seamless. There was something to be said for being friends first. 

“Hey, babe,” Scylla slid behind Raelle and gave her a kiss on the cheek, shooting Tally a grin. “Hey, Tally. Long time no see. Did you change your hair or something? You look different.”

Raelle couldn’t help but smirk because even Scylla could tell something was up. She gave Tally a look and her friend rolled her eyes. “You guys,” she muttered under her breath.

“So there  _ is _ something,” Rae replied as Scylla sat down at the table. “I was just telling her that she’s glowing. Maybe she and Abigail have some news?”

Tally pouted. “Can you stop ruining the surprise?” She nearly jumped out of her seat when Abigail appeared behind her and squeezed her shoulders.

“Did they figure it out already?” Abigail laughed, wrapping her arms around Tally and looking at Raelle and Scylla with a smile on her face. “We’re adopting…”

“A dog,” Tally finished.

Raelle laughed out loud, covering her mouth when her friends glared at her response. “A  _ dog? _ Sorry, I just...I thought you were going to say a kid. Or that you’re getting married.” She always thought they were getting married. They basically acted like they were married anyway.

Abigail rolled her eyes and declared that they should grab some lunch before continuing their conversation. Raelle had no reason to argue, her stomach growling in response to the suggestion. There were plenty of options, all freshly made, and when they settled back down at the table together, conversation began to flow even as they ate. They had some catching up to do, even those who were working together, because apparently Scylla wasn’t even fully aware of what was going on in Abigail’s life. Her friend explained that the Bellweather Corp was being sued for a defective heart valve and that it wasn’t a singular instance, having become a class action lawsuit. Abigail had gotten out just in time and couldn’t help feeling her family was getting what they deserved.

“So tell us more about this dog, you guys,” Scylla asked between bites of her sandwich, giving Raelle a look that said she’d been putting a damper on their energy. She shrugged her shoulders.

Tally quickly wiped her mouth with a napkin before answering. “WELL,” she started with peak Tally enthusiasm, making Raelle grin. “I convinced Abi to come to the dog shelter a few weeks ago. We were going to look at this Australian Shepherd on the website, but then we met this little guy. I fell completely in love with him. His name is Ollie, and we’re signing the adoption papers after work today.” She took out her phone and slid it across the table so that Raelle could see a picture of the admittedly unusual looking mutt. Abigail looked less than enthused because the poor pup looked a bit strange, but Tally was happy and that was probably all that mattered.

The dog’s ears were very weird, kind of mangled looking. Raelle couldn’t help but let the question slip. “What’s wrong with his ears?” Scylla reached over and gently punched her in the arm. She saw her friend’s face falter. “His ears are adorable,” she corrected.

“He’s very cute,” Scylla remarked when she saw the photo and returned Tally’s phone. Tally seemed happy with that, her smile returning expeditiously.

Abigail poured some dressing over her salad. “For the record, we are  _ talking _ about marriage. But we’ve only been dating for six months and we’ve already taken our time getting here, so we’re in no rush to get married. We definitely want kids, but…” She chuckled, glancing knowingly at Tally. “The dog is kind of like our trial run. We thought about a cat, but a dog is more responsibility, so it’s more like having a kid would be. Anyway, what’s up with you guys?”

“Just finishing up my residency. Can’t come soon enough. I feel so left out with you guys all being here,” Raelle complained. “I feel like you’re having so much fun without me.”

“It’s true. You’re missing our daily dance parties…” Scylla teased, reaching for Raelle’s hand and giving it a squeeze to let her know she was kidding.

As Raelle’s gaze settled onto her girlfriend, a slow smile came across her face and then she lit up when she remembered a big piece of news she’d forgotten to tell their friends about. “Oh! I nearly forgot! My papa is finally going to meet Scylla this weekend. I’m really excited!”

“Yep.” Scylla nodded, turning toward Tally & Abigail. “You guys have met him, right? Have any tips?” 

Raelle glanced at Tally, who was grinning widely at the thought. She had always liked Rae’s father and the two had a kind of special bond, so she was the property authority to answer. “Just one. Make his daughter happy. He’s pretty laid back. Just be your wonderful self and I’m sure that you’ll be fine.”

Scylla was clearly nervous about meeting her father, but she didn’t really need to be. She knew he’d like her, because how could he not? Tally wasn’t well loved by Abigail’s parents, but from what she’d heard, she had pretty much cut her family off. Tally’s family had embraced Abigail with open arms, as Abigail was telling them now.

“Tal’s sister Tara said and I quote ‘it’s about time’ and their mother CRIED. She cried. You know she’s told me she loves me more times in the past six months than my mother did my entire life?” She sighed, taking Tally’s hand in hers. “We really are family now.”

Tally knew that Raelle was an only child and her mother was gone, whereas Scylla was also an only child and had lost both of her parents. She thought she’d offer, “My family can be your family too. The more the merrier.” It was a sweet, thoughtful thing to say.

Their happiness was palpable, not just Tally & Abigail’s, but also her and Scylla’s. Their relationships had both deepened over the course of several months and the future was looking bright for all of them. They were finally living the lives they’d only dreamed of. Tally’s company had overtaken Bellweather Corp, Abigail was living her dream at the hospital. They had each other and they were discussing marriage. Scylla was the head of neuro, getting to do what she loved every day, and they were talking about moving in together. Raelle had never been happier, she realized as she looked around the table at the women that she loved.

As each of them finished their meals, conversation waned and it was naturally time for them to go their separate ways. Tally and Abigail headed upstairs together, looking guilty as hell, and Raelle was pretty sure they were about to bang in Abigail’s office. Scylla was taking a break and she had her pager, so she suggested that Raelle take her for a ride on the bike.

“I didn’t bring an extra helmet, I didn’t think you-”

Before she could finish her apology, Scylla pecked her lips, held up a finger and hurried toward the elevator. Furrowing her eyebrows in confusion, she followed on her heels, curious about what she was doing. Her girlfriend led her to her office and before she could ask what was going on, she pulled a box out from under her desk with a smile.

“What’s that?” She questioned curiously.

Scylla only smiled. “I don’t know, why don’t you open it?”

“....it’s not my birthday, is it?”

She laughed, but stubbornly insisted Raelle open the gift and with a sigh, the blonde opened the box. As she pulled out a personalized motorcycle helmet, her mouth fell open. It had her name airbrushed on the front, and as she turned it around, she realized there was more. Airbrushed on the back of the helmet was the phrase “in good hands.” It actually made her a bit emotional as she looked up at her girlfriend. She dropped the helmet onto the desk and wrapped her arms around Scylla, smiling as she buried her face against her neck.

“I love you,” she whispered, before nearly losing her mind. They’d been dating for six months and it was the first time she’d ever said the words. She couldn’t help but panic and Scylla pulled away, seeing the scared look in her eyes.

“Hey. Hello. Look at me.” She grabbed her face in her hands, forcing Raelle to meet her gaze. “Stop freaking out. I love you too.”

Hand in hand, the two of them started down the hall, accidentally catching a glimpse of Tally on her knees in Abigail’s office. Her face red, Raelle quickly knocked on the window, grateful that Abigail took the hint and closed the blinds. She and Scylla laughed as they entered the elevator, Raelle putting on her new helmet and letting Scylla wear her old one. Her zipper was pulled up, gloves on as she slid onto the bike, smirking as Scylla climbed on behind her, arms slipping around her waist.

The last thought she had as they rode into the sun was that she’d never felt closer to her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for coming along for the ride! This was a lot of fun. Look out for my next fic, a high school AU with a Raylla focus.


End file.
